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<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/29130336">Connections: Broken and Reforged</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/I_HeartLapidot/pseuds/I_HeartLapidot'>I_HeartLapidot</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Series:</b></td><td>Reincarnation [2]</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>The Owl House (Cartoon)</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>Angst and Hurt/Comfort, Cuddling &amp; Snuggling, Espionage, F/M, Flashbacks, School Drama, Unexpected Bonding</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>Completed</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2021-02-01</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2021-03-22</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-05-13 06:28:54</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>Mature</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>4</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>27,504</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/29130336</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/I_HeartLapidot/pseuds/I_HeartLapidot</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>Now free of the sadistic woman he was forced to marry, Alador Blight decides to reach out to his former school friend and her sister, his lost love.</p><p>And with this comes explorations of his past... and motions in the present shadows...</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Relationships:</b></td><td>Alador Blight/Lilith Clawthorne, Background Amity Blight/Luz Noceda - Relationship</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Series:</b></td><td>Reincarnation [2]</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Series URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/series/2121141</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Comments:</b></td><td>5</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>48</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>1. Prologue</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
      <p>So, this was going to be a single work, but the idea blossomed out, and we have this series now.</p><p>I can't make an estimation for when the parts come out, as people will interpret them as deadlines, but there isn't a day when I'm not working on it.</p>
    </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>The Boiling Isles' moon hung in the sky, casting the entire landmass in a bright blue glow. And Emperor Belos' castle stared grimly down from its perch in the Titan's chest; huge towers crowned with stone ramparts, armed guards stalking the rafters even at this late hour, immense spikes lining the pit over which the Clawthorne sisters had fought their duel over, and banners baring the symbol of the Emperor's Coven fluttering in the wind. The singular tower where the Emperor and his inner circle resided was huge, granary and barracks and relic storage and house all in one, crowned by battlements that were designed to look as intimidating as possible. </p><p>But Odalia Graves was never one to be intimidated.  </p><p>She had come here, two days after the event known as The Siege of Hexside, two days after Alador Blight turned his cloak and kicked her out of the family. </p><p>She had promised her own parents that she would not let their bloodline down. And despite her own sexual preferences leaning towards other women (like both her daughters), she still performed her duties. And she knew Alador hated it as much as she did, albeit for different reasons.</p><p>Despite that, however, they ended up with three children; one son and two daughters. And, in one swift stroke, he had taken them all from her under threat of exposing her discipline. He had allowed those meddling Clawthornes to corrupt them, and twist their minds into something foul.</p><p>Now, she had come to the one place in the Isles that would allow her to fix this entire mess, and rescue her children from the brink. </p><p>"Who approaches the Emperor's castle?" one of the soldiers called down from the ramparts upon seeing her approach.</p><p>"Odalia Graves, formerly Lady Blight," she called back. "I have business with the Emperor himself."</p><p>The soldier's head twitched as the disembodied voice of Belos gave him commands, and he relayed them; "Extend the bridge!"</p><p> </p><p>Emperor Belos, ruler of the entire Boiling Isles, was currently reclining in his throne and waiting on the scientist assigned to lead experiments on modifying a certain kind of elixir. </p><p>"Report." Belos' voice was level, calm, even a little interested to find the results of the experiment. </p><p>"Well, my lord, we are pleased to report that our projections for the physical changes were one-hundred-percent accurate," the scientist reported. "Our modifications of the Tantibus Monstrum elixir did result in several failures, as we feared, but we were eventually able to perfect it and our willing volunteer became what we wanted."</p><p>"And you made sure to only experiment on convicted prisoners sentenced to such experimentation?" Belos' voice had hardened a little, at the thoughts of his underlings stooping to lower levels. </p><p>"Of course, my lord," the scientist replied, bowing his head that bit more. "We would never dream of doing otherwise."</p><p>"Good." The Emperor's voice reverted to how it was before. "What about mental effects? Were there any abnormal behaviours in your subjects, willing or otherwise?"</p><p>"None that we could tell, my lord. We would definitely need more time with live, willing subjects to make sure of it, but examinations of the corpse's brain tissue showed no abnormalities." </p><p>"The corpse, you say?" Belos cut in, more interested. "It was killed in its attack?" </p><p>"<em>She</em> was speared to death by a pillar of ice, my lord, right after suffering what appeared to be a fire injury to the shoulder. We can report, because of this, that all subjects can be defeated by standard magic that we all already use in case they go rogue."</p><p>If Belos was surprised by the slight defiance, he didn't show it. "I see. What of <em>her</em> combat capabilities?"</p><p>"We can report that they are largely unchanged, my lord. The training she had already had was what allowed her to capture most of the body without injury, and what we did was merely an aid, it seems."</p><p>"But she was still defeated." It wasn't a question; it was a statement. </p><p>"Yes, my lord. It is said that one of the students was overlooked, and she led our trooper into a trap, though not without scars of her own."</p><p>"Overconfidence was what it was; plain and simple," Belos curtly cut in. "It always leads to a disaster in combat, and this was no exception." </p><p>"Be that as it may, my lord, we cannot deny the effectiveness of what we have done here."</p><p>"Of course. And have you come up with a different elixir to reverse the effects of your modified one?"</p><p>The scientist seemed to freeze; Belos needed nothing but his eyes to see that he had come up short. "Ah...n...no, my lord."</p><p>Belos sighed and held up his hand; he had no time for petty grovelling. "Save it. And stall all your other experiments until you come up with one that works; what is the point in coming up with weapons like this if they cannot be controlled properly or be undone when necessary? And what would that say about us?"</p><p>Nothing came out of his underling's mouth; he had no answer to that question. </p><p>Belos sighed, before leaning forward; more people needed to understand the situation. "Make no mistake; the Isles will become the universe's biggest tinderbox unless we find a way to unite the people once more. Lilith Clawthorne did more damage to us than she knew when she chose blood over oaths, and we still haven't been able to staunch the wound." </p><p>The scientist seemed to connect the dots; "And when our enemies reveal themselves, we need to know how to fight them -- and the last thing we need is traitors within our own ranks." </p><p>"Yes." </p><p>A guard opened the doors, and strode through the hall before kneeling before Belos and the Titan's heart. "My lord, Odalia Graves has arrived, and is waiting for you."</p><p>Belos could have sensed that himself with his power over the castle, but his illness that required him to break open palismans and absorb their essence would get worse the more he strained himself; thus, starting a mere month ago, he opted to delegate such tasks as this to others, in order to save power. "Send her in," he told the guard, who rose and strode back to the doors.</p><p>With the guard in question out of sight, Belos gave a fluttering of the hand, as if shooing the scientist away. "We shall discuss this matter later. For now, return to your work."</p><p>"At once, my lord." </p><p> </p><p>The castle's halls were in deep silence; a far cry from how the public perceived them. It was said that the best witches the Isles could offer were always scurrying around these halls, never idle, always developing magic in some way, shape, or form.</p><p>However, as she walked through under the escort of four uniformed Emperor's Coven members, she found the entire castle to be covered in a mysterious, almost intimidating feeling, especially with the only light coming from the torches in the corridors, now that the sun had set.</p><p>Odalia found herself wondering if it was by design.</p><p>Eventually, though, she reached the gates to the throne room proper. The members escorting her opened the gates, and took up guard positions outside, gesturing for her to go in. </p><p>The room itself was huge, dimly lit by several magical torches just like the rest of the castle. And of course, the Titan's giant, green heart, beating as if it were alive.</p><p>And at the centre of it all, the Emperor of the Boiling Isles himself.</p><p>"Greetings, Odalia. I am pleased to see you have made it," Belos said from where he was sat on his throne, right underneath the Titan's beating heart, multitudes of pipes leading out of the green mass. </p><p>The throne itself was a simple, yet imposing lump of iron. It looked hellishly uncomfortable to sit in, but maybe that was because only he was the one who did -- and it was appropriately sculpted to be comfortable for him. </p><p>Either way, at least he, Belos, <em>could</em> sit. Everyone else had to either stand respectfully, or kneel. All the guards in their grey armour and white cloaks, the handful of lingering advisors, Kikimora, even Odalia herself; all stood. </p><p>Odalia walked through the room, before standing ramrod still a few meters away from the throne. "Of course, my liege. What is it you desired from me?"</p><p>"The news of your sudden divorce caused quite the ripple effect in higher Boiling Isles society. Many rumours have spread, all saying different things about what took place and who did what. I was hoping you could help separate truth from lies."</p><p>Odalia focused all her intellect on the task at hand; this was her chance to get the Emperor's help.</p><p>This would have been far easier if the rumours had not spread, but Belos would have been instantly suspicious if he was told to dismiss them all. Now, Odalia was going to have to walk the sharpest of edges; making Alador and the Clawthornes look bad to Belos, while at the same time not saying anything he would know to be a lie. </p><p>She started at the beginning, making sure to emphasize all the things her children went through. "If you do have any children of your own, sire," Odalia added at the end, "make sure to beat them properly so they listen to you. I had three children and I hardly beat them at all, and now they pay far more attention to lowlifes and the father that did beat them than they do to me. You know, I cannot help but believe that we could have avoided most of this fighting if those deluded children would simply put down their staffs and listen to their mothers."</p><p>Belos was thankful for his mask in that moment -- because it meant no one could see him grinding his jaw. "I see. How does this affect my Coven, exactly?" </p><p>"The fact is that the influence of wild magic spreading, especially to such vulnerable minds, is not something I imagine the Titan would be pleased with. And your own Coven has been leaderless and vulnerable for months, hasn't it?"</p><p>"It <em>has</em> been months since Lilith Clawthorne decided to remove herself from the Emperor's Coven, and I have been testing subjects since then to find a replacement for her." Belos' tone grew bitter. "And none of them have the capability to help us save face after the fiasco that was the Owl Lady's failed petrification."</p><p>Odalia felt her hope glow a bit brighter. Clearly, professional pride and reputation were the hooks into the Emperor's heart. Excellent. And she had far more in her persuasive arsenal than just simple lies and knowledge of how gullible people were.</p><p>Deciding to probe, she asked, "Have you offered it to any of the heads of the Covens?" </p><p>"No. They are powerful, yes, but they hold none of the creative thought I need in such a position. They follow orders, yes, but hold no imagination; I keep them around for delegation's sake." </p><p>With the one glaring exception being Alador, Odalia found that accurate... the head of her own Coven in particular, Oracle, was old and on the cusp of retiring, content to follow orders without question, so she expected no problems there. Alador, though... there could be problems with him.</p><p>"Speaking of which," Belos redirected, "was Alador always as you described?"</p><p>"He was reluctant and stubborn, yes, even after we married, but I did teach him to behave with the aid of his parents. We moulded him into a proper husband, suitably submissive. But clearly we were wrong; he held more of a spark than I thought."</p><p>Some of the guards in the room exchanged looks, and Kikimora raised an eyebrow at that, but Belos said nothing. So far, Odalia's statements were not mutually exclusive. </p><p>Odalia took that as a cue to continue: "He allowed our precious children to mingle with peasants, and indulge themselves in deplorable acts, <em>including</em> wild magic." Again, Belos said nothing. "Especially my Amity. My precious daughter, always the best of them. She truly became my own when she ridded herself of a peasant girl, and she was always the one with the future at your side, my lord." Still nothing; Belos hadn't even moved a centimetre. "I gave her the best education the Isles could offer, drove her to become even more, made sure she only had relationships with the best, made her into an excellent young woman." She felt herself begin to shake with anger at what came next, but she let everyone see it; it would help. "But it all went wrong; she abandoned all decency, and allowed those Clawthorne brats to corrupt her into a filthy criminal lowlife, and to make it even worse, their newfound human pet played a large role in it -- she seduced my daughter, and made her into one of them, easy prey for the criminal sisters to sink their jaws into." </p><p>"The human is not to be underestimated," Belos cut in, remembering how he had done the same thing and how it cost him an easy victory. "Continue."</p><p>Odalia adopted a more desperate tone, as she knelt. "I ask that you take me as your new Emperor's Coven leader. Allow me the chance to save my children from themselves and their father's corrupting influence, and rid the Isles of the Clawthornes once and for all. I am powerful, my lord, and I can think outside the box, as I have proven. I will serve loyally, and make sure all my underlings do so too. I will promise to do what my predecessors could not."</p><p>Belos took it all in, and eventually replied, "Your raw talent in Oracle magic, and political navigation are both significant, to say the least." A pause. "And tell me, what do I, and the Isles at large, gain from this?" </p><p>This was the moment for her to spring the trap, as she stood once again. "If I go public with this story, then the people will rally to it; they can't resist a woman being a victim of abuse. The sympathy will come flooding in, saving you more face than anything those charlatans could hope to do. Not to mention, it will turn the public against Alador for what he did, and against the Clawthornes for aiding him, on top of making them want to return Edric, Emira, and Amity back to their real family; me." Sensing she had him on the ropes, Odalia drove the point home; "You can tell the people you helped a lost woman in her hour of need, and I will help you accomplish your goals."</p><p>Deafening silence reigned in the throne room, and for a moment, Odalia was afraid that her offer would be rejected -- but she refused to show it. She and the Emperor locked eyes, and the world froze in time.</p><p>Belos broke it by inclining his head. "Very well." Odalia inwardly breathed a sigh of relief. "Now, I will remove your Coven patch so you can once again perform all kinds of magic. I would have transferred you to be mentored by the previous head of my Coven, but I'm sure you understand this is simply not possible anymore." Odalia bowed her head in understanding. "In addition, before we proceed, you will have to swear an oath of fealty. I cannot afford to have any more wild witches in the Isles, especially when just one could ruin everything." </p><p>That made sense; Odalia nodded, and knelt on the ground once more. Belos stuck his right arm out, and summoned his mechanical staff, the orb that particular otherworldly shade of rusty red. Moving the top in a circle, a larger, pure white circle appeared under Odalia.</p><p>She took a breath, bowed her head, and spoke: "In the sight of the Titan, and in the name of all witchkind, I, Odalia Graves, swear my full allegiance to you, Emperor Belos. Your morals are my morals, your wishes are my code. May you guide me through the darkness, and grant me strength to destroy all who oppose you. For you will is that of the Titan's, and to carry it out is my new purpose in life until I die." </p><p>All the torches in the room, previously dimly lit, now blazed furiously once the oath was completed. Odalia felt the channels inside her body opening up once again, as her Oracle Coven lock vanished. Her irises had shifted to a pure white, before reverting to their usual green colour. </p><p>Once the oath was sealed, the torches returned to how they had been. And Belos' voice now held a hint of pride; "Good. Your capability of all magic types should be restored, and your Oracle skills unchanged. However, this does not exempt you from training in the other types; magic knowledge cannot be transferred. As such, you are not to display such abilities to anybody until you are officially sworn into office in front of the public. Do you understand?"</p><p>"Of course, my liege. I will not disappoint."</p><p>"Very well. I must also mention, we can further achieve your goals if you are willing to make a sacrifice." <em>A witch can have anything... if they're willing to sacrifice... everything.</em></p><p>"My liege? What do you mean?"</p><p>"If we are to properly convince the public that what you say is true, then we must give them all the reasons we can to hate the Clawthornes and Alador, rather than us." </p><p>Odalia said nothing. She was a master manipulator, and that meant she knew when to hold her tongue. </p><p>"I would give you injuries befitting many cases of domestic abuse. The public will see them, and more will believe your story. The Clawthornes, especially the Owl Lady, have more public support than I first thought; seeing proof would only sway them." </p><p>Once again, the room was silent. Eventually, Odalia gave her consent. Belos raised his staff again, engulfing Odalia in an aura the colour of the staff's orb, and pulling her into a spread eagle position.</p><p>Inwardly, she was afraid, but she made herself be strong. The moment she did show fear, it was over. </p><p>"I'm going to count to three, and then it will be applied. Brace yourself." There was no emotion in the Emperor's voice; no remorse for what he was about to do, nor sadistic glee for her impending pain. Nothing. </p><p>"One." Some of the guards and advisors looked away, but the others (Kikimora included) looked on. Belos seemed to ignore them.</p><p>"Two." Odalia sucked in a large intake of breath, bracing herself for the pain and promising herself that she wouldn't scream.</p><p>"Three." It felt like acid was being pumped through her body instead of blood; the pain was washing through her body in waves. She could feel the bruises forming on her bones, the blood vessels bursting, the breath shooting out of her, and then the bones cracking.</p><p>And she screamed. </p><p>Just like that, it was over. Belos released the hold, and Odalia dropped to the floor. As she curled in on herself, looking just like Amity in the aftermath of her 'punishments', everyone bore witness to what had been done.</p><p>Vivid bruises in the shape of hands covered both of her arms, the fingers wrapping around the middle. She looked far more gaunt, as if she'd been starved. Several of her bones looked like they'd been repeatedly broken, and healed incorrectly. And her face was... well... kind of a ruin, as if she'd been hit repeatedly in the face.</p><p>The stereotypical image of a battered spouse through and through.</p><p>Belos dissipated his staff, and addressed the guards. "Take her to the healers, and make sure to capture images of her form as it is now. No one else can know of these events. We shall act as the Titan wills." Six of them moved forward to carry Odalia out, and everyone else retired for the night as Belos dismissed them all.</p><p>Kikimora, though, went after the Emperor.</p><p> </p><p>"My lord?" she asked once they were alone, in an empty corridor. "Do you... believe... that witch's claims?" </p><p>"I don't; her story was horribly slanted, and very clearly biased against those she hates. I shall have a close eye kept on her, like that house, and any attempts at sabotage will promptly be acted upon. She very much wants me to return her children to her so she can mold them into her own image, and help kill her former husband and both the Clawthornes -- something she knows I already want to do." </p><p>Kikimora's eye widened to the size of a golf ball. "Is <em>that</em> what she wants from us?"</p><p>Belos countered, still without looking, "What else could all her talk about their misdeeds and her claims of abuse, along with idolizing her children be for, if not that?" </p><p>"But my lord, if she is lying this blatantly, and for such a goal, why are you trusting her with such a responsibility, and all the power her position entails?" The little demon looked hopelessly lost. </p><p>Belos turned around, and looked her in the eye. "Simply put, Kikimora, it is not the first time I have made a pact with a witch I despise, and it certainly won't be the last." With that he turned, and strode towards his quarters.</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0002"><h2>2. Phase One: Rekindling Warmth</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>
  <em>Whatever it takes.</em>
</p><p>Those three words stared mockingly up at Alador, as he looked down at his and Lilith's shared love picture. It was a slow day in his office of the Abomination coven, where his workload of documents that needed his signature was lower than expected. Thus, it allowed him to wax nostalgic about his past.</p><p>Looking up, he took in his surroundings. The ceiling was ridiculously high, causing all the sounds to echo. The rather pleasant smell of fresh paper permeated the room, along with the sound of the fireplace in the corner. To his right was a huge window, a vast forest just in front of it, with the town of Bonesborough visible in the distance, and the vast expanse of the Boiling Sea just beyond that. The colour inside was overwhelmingly brown -- the exact same shade as his own auburn hair, funnily enough. Portraits of some of the most influential Abomination witches lined the walls, the two previous holders of his position included.</p><p>But he had something else he'd much rather look at.</p><p>He looked down again, at the intricate frame, containing a simple pencil drawing of two figures - Lilith and himself - standing together in a passionate embrace, as if they were dancing. They were certainly dressed for the occasion, with Alador in a plain, black, yet perfectly cut tuxedo and Lilith in a beautiful, flowing white dress.  He remembered all the unbridled love he'd felt as he drew both the copies, capturing all they'd felt for each other. </p><p>The background was simple, with the full moon and a few recognisable star constellations hanging over the couple. Both their names were signed on the lower right corner, on both their copies, and that mantra in the lower left corner. </p><p>Alador could remember those months like yesterday. Amity was so similar to himself at that age; smart, cunning, lonely, and even a little desperate. In fact, when he looked at her scarred face now, it was as if the years had fallen away and he was looking at his own fifteen year old self; a lost, scared, but brilliant and caring, child.</p><p>In all his time at Hexside -- a school not that different to how it was now, oddly -- he had been hellbent on being the best wherever he could, not only in his classes, but also to try and rid himself of the stigma that had been stuck to his family name like mishandled abomination clay ever since Belos declared himself Emperor. </p><p>Lilith and Edalyn Clawthorne had both crashed right in and ruined all of that, in the best way possible. From the unlimited amounts of teasing, to all those pranks and sabotages, to the supportive words thrown to each other in the hallways, to being there for one another when they were going through a crisis, the three were always together through thick and thin.</p><p>In fact, it was high time he went to see them himself at long last. Without a certain manipulative creature in his way, all he had to do now was head over to that house.</p><p>He summoned his assistant; a small, young girl named Kuro Pineheart. She was mostly witch, but anyone could tell by looking at her that she had bird demon blood. Her blue eyes were larger and sharper than most, and her hands and feet were clawed, as if they were bird talons. She clothed herself in simple, but sturdy black cotton, that went well with the silver nightingale that fastened her cloak.</p><p>"You wanted to see me, sir?" asked Kuro, in a quiet, soft spoken voice.</p><p>"Yes," confirmed Alador. "Considering that it's a slow day today, I want you to send tomorrow's work to the both of us, so we can have tomorrow off from work." </p><p>Kuro seemed to light up a little at that suggestion. "Really, sir?" </p><p>"Yes, I have personal matters to take care of and I plan to use that time to do so," he explained. Upon getting his assistant's agreement, he then added, "Now, what about the latest intelligence reports?" </p><p>The young girl drew a piece of rolled up paper from between her breasts (which were small, but perfectly rounded) of all places, and began to read. "The lord of Mias Estate plans to illegally sell some poachers he caught on his land as slaves." </p><p>Alador sighed, but a smile was on his face; he'd wanted to get rid of that pest for a while. "This means we should make a lesson out of him, wouldn't you agree?" </p><p>"Yes, sir; we <em>should</em> send our agents to make him vanish, but a full trial before the Emperor would ensure the continued loyalty of the other lords and ladies." </p><p><em>And keep him more occupied here as well, instead of his Day of Unity.</em> Alador handed Kuro the quill he was using. "Alright, send the evidence of <em>that</em> to Kikimora."</p><p>The young girl took the griffin feather quill in a clawed hand, and made a mark on the paper. "Okay, a pair of female pirate lovers caught a month ago plan to escape; they have bribed a guard in the Conformatorium to let them out in three days, and made arrangements to sail out on the sloop <em>Steel Heart,</em> disguised as sailors." </p><p>"Alright, inform Warden Wrath; seize the guard they bribed, and explain how honourable it is to be a conscripted worker. And have more guards posted around that sloop, in case the pirate scum find a second desperate soul who needs bribes." </p><p>Another mark on the paper. "Of course, sir. One of our own, a one-eyed brewer of new abomination goops, murdered a bard's daughter last evening, at a gambling den on the Silver Road. (so named because of how much money flowed along it.) He accused her of cheating at cards."</p><p>"Was it true?"</p><p>"Oh, it was, sir. She must've thought a one-eyed man would be easier to cheat out of his snails."</p><p>"In that case, make sure he doesn't get charged; honesty is in short supply lately, isn't it?" </p><p>"Yes, sir." Another mark -- Kuro's hands were as dexterous as anyone else's, despite the fact that her fingers were more like talons than anything else. "Lastly, there's the matter of Bonesborough's head constable."</p><p>"Oh, yes." The previous head constable in Bonesborough had been outed as a paedophile, and imprisoned immediately. Alador had pulled his strings and made sure that the replacement was loyal to Lilith -- and by extension, him. An enthusiastic man who loved back pats and head pats more than anything; Steve Blackwater. (Yes, that Steve.) All that remained was to get rid of the competitors, and Alador had left that task up to Kuro. "What have you arranged?"</p><p>"The carrack <em>Flower's Wind</em> sets sail in the morning for the Scipian steel mines, with the previous head constable upon it," the young girl began. Upon seeing his pleased expression, she continued, "I simply made sure that those eight people joined him, destined for the same fate. Oh, and the very brutal one? The woman willing to rip an infant from his mother and dash his head against a wall? I made sure to tell the captain it wouldn't be a problem if she was to fall out on the way there." </p><p>"Good to hear." Alador leaned forward. "Were there any problems whilst you were doing this?" </p><p>"As I was writing the letter, sir, I was walked in upon by a Plant Coven member," Kuro informed him. Upon seeing Alador's face fall in disappointment at the sign of exposure, Kuro quickly added, "But I was able to throw the letter into the fireplace and burn it before it was seen. I sent another, unseen one after." </p><p>Alador nodded, satisfied. Things like this were why he had chosen to take on Kuro specifically; despite her being as fragile as a butterfly wing and paranoid about being uncovered, she was experienced in the realms of administration and unwaveringly loyal to him.</p><p> </p><p>That night, when their work was done, Alador and Kuro left the huge building where they worked, preparing to head home.</p><p>"I never actually got the chance to thank you, sir," Kuro said, as the two walked down the well-maintained marble steps. </p><p>"What for?" Alador asked, not sure about what he'd specifically done for her that warranted thanks now. </p><p>"Before I came into your service, I was a part of those anti-male movements, the kind we've been hearing about lately." Alador knew what she meant; he was very proud of Amity for laying the smackdown on one of them the day she began studying it all. "I used to think the Isles would be better if men weren't a part of it. But then you just beat all that out of me with your words." Alador remembered -- it wasn't something he enjoyed doing, but he still did it. But why would she...? "I wanted to thank you for that, because if you didn't, I wouldn't have..." She didn't get to finish that sentence.</p><p><em>"Mommy!"</em> a young voice called out, making both of them look over to it.</p><p>Standing just across the road from them was a tall, long-haired, muscular, blue-skinned man wearing a sleeveless robe, and an instrument of some kind -- a guitar, it looked like -- slung over his back. In his arms was a little boy, and an even littler girl, who both had a bit of bird in them -- as evidenced by the claws they had for hands and feet -- with the boy waving his arms towards Kuro, a big smile on his face.</p><p>"Like I was saying, sir," Kuro continued, "the beliefs I once had could have robbed me of the marriage and the two beautiful children that I have now. So I wanted to thank you, for indirectly helping me love them freely and wholeheartedly."</p><p>"Well... you're welcome..." Alador muttered, not sure what to make of this level of appreciation. "Did you plan to spend this time gap we created with them?"</p><p>"Yes I did, sir." </p><p>"Well, don't let me keep you. Sounds like they need you as much as you need them," Alador replied, motioning with his hand for her to go. </p><p>Giving a quick thanks, Kuro quickly crossed the street over to her family, giving each of them a kiss in turn. Wrapping her arms tightly around her husband's waist, she walked off down the cobblestone path. </p><p>A slight smile flickered across Alador's face at the sight, as he summoned Venator's staff and flew home to the manor. </p><p>His children had already fed themselves, and the butler, Iscar, had already made Alador something filling enough. After finishing the meal, Alador made his way down to the manor's basement, to a door hidden behind a tapestry depicting Belos declaring himself Emperor, to check on his wealth. </p><p>As expected, the Blights were one of the wealthiest families on the Boiling Isles. However, considering how he never trusted banks, especially not right now, Alador had a different method of storing wealth. In the form of a huge art collection. </p><p>The basement of the manor was now Alador's storage space for his collection, in the form of a stone room the size of a warehouse. Display tables, cases, shelves and racks of all kinds showcased treasures and antiquities from all over the Boiling Isles, and some scavenged from the human realm. Sculptures, paintings, rare gemstones, and other art objects were scattered amidst ornate antique weapons and scrolls. Tapestries hung from the walls that weren't covered with bookshelves housing original copies of books. Rugs of exquisite beauty were covered by protective magical wards that felt like Alador was walking on a thick layer of gel.</p><p>Semiprecious gems adorned the group of Bard artifacts over in one of the corners. Bottles of the rarest, well-aged liquors in the entirety of the Titan's corpse and Earth were suspended in a gold-embossed rack.</p><p>Alador wandered through the room, checking for any signs of tampering. Pausing briefly, he looked closer at a little sculpture of a manticore, carved from magically frozen ice. On closer inspection, there was nothing wrong -- only a layer of dust disturbed by his own breath. It wafted up into the air, and Alador was unable to stop the thunderous sneeze that followed.</p><p>The collection was never in a condition to be viewed as a whole. While Iscar was an excellent cook and a highly efficient houseboy, he had never been trained to care for such items. And Alador himself never had the time to properly interact with his kids, let alone indulge in such a practice. Not to mention that the idea of letting anyone else know about it was simply laughable.</p><p>As he locked the room behind him, inspection complete, Alador looked down at the relic he kept on him at all times, the one that was worth the entire room he'd just inspected put together.</p><p>The Scipian steel sword called Silencer. </p><p>Looking into the sapphires the pommel had for eyes, Alador felt as if the wolf head was staring back, reminding him of exactly how he came to be in possession of it. His right arm twitched like a phantom limb at the memories.</p><p>More often than not, Alador refused to consider the two women claiming to be his mothers as Blights, let alone family, and that his grandfather was the one who raised him... it was far easier that way... </p><p> </p><p>The next morning, Alador stirred awake under the heavy furs of his bed, realising again that without someone sadistic and cruel taking up space in it, the manor was starting to feel more like home. Not by much, but it was noticeable. </p><p>Dressed only in his underwear, Alador pulled on his dress pants and walked barefoot into the bathroom, beginning his morning routine. He washed his face with soapy water, cleaned his teeth for slightly longer than he should've, styled the hair on his head, and maintained his beard. </p><p>Often when he was younger, the gleam of a shaving razor was <em>very</em> tempting. Other times, the edge felt far too similar to Odalia's eyes. </p><p>Resolutely, he forced those thoughts out of his head and reminded himself that he was free of them now; he had the chance to be the caring, righteous father he wanted to be. And his children needed him.</p><p>Dressed for the day, Alador headed into the kitchen for breakfast. Preparing some toast and pouring himself a tall glass of apple blood, and laying his staff against the table, he shook off the last lingering remnants of sleep, remembering exactly what he was doing today. </p><p>As he settled down, Amity came into the room, carrying her own staff and looking slightly better than most other times she'd got out of bed this early. Perhaps it was because she was doing it because she wanted to, not forcing herself to in order to placate some horrible monster in her life. </p><p>"Good morning, Amity," he greeted, with more of a light in his voice than usual. </p><p>"Good morning, Dad," was her half-asleep reply. A few seconds after it left her lips, she immediately squeaked and froze, realizing exactly what she'd just said. </p><p>Similarly, Alador could feel his own heart warming that bit more. Ever since a young age, all of his children had called him, 'father.' It was proper, respectful, and polite. But it wasn't warm. 'Dad', though, was all of those things and more. It was something normal children called their parents. </p><p>And Alador knew, more than anything, that he wanted that. To greet all his kids with a wide smile -- his real one -- and a big hug. To laugh at their jokes, even if they weren't good, and be happy seeing them act like children. </p><p>To both of their surprises, Venator and Echo hopped off their staffs, and exchanged the palisman equivalent of a 'good morning'; they pressed their staff interlocks together, Venator's on his right front leg, and Echo's on the centre top of his back flipper. </p><p>The scorpion and the dolphin then scurried back to their creators. Echo hopped onto Amity's shoulder and nuzzled into her neck, while Venator crawled up Alador's arm and stopped at his shoulder, as Alador reached up to stroke him with his finger. He'd always been able to rely on his loyal palisman.</p><p>Amity was still in slight shock from her slip up, and Alador noticed what it was; "It feels good, right? To get back what you lost?" </p><p>Amity nodded, but clearly wanted to change the subject due to the multitudes of things she was feeling. "I... I guess...?"</p><p>"Good. Now, how are you finding all your new classes?" Alador asked. It had been two weeks since the Siege. </p><p>"It's mixed," was Amity's reply, as she woke up a little at the mention of learning. "Abominations, Healing and Beast Keeping are all pretty easy for me to pick up; I should be on my way to the top in no time. Plants and Illusions are both kind of hard, but I've got great people helping. That said, I <em>don't</em> want to have to ask Ed and Em for help; they'd be insufferable." </p><p>"And in other obvious news, water is a liquid," Alador sarcastically replied. "Keep going." </p><p>Amity rolled her eyes, a smile dancing across her face. "Bard and Construction aren't that bad, but both Potions and Oracle magic are both just crapshoots." </p><p>A vengeful part of Alador was happy that Amity was struggling in Oracle magic, as another way of sticking it to Odalia, but the rest of him sharply punched that down, remembering that it never was the fault of the magic, only the person wielding it, no matter what. And to suggest otherwise would be insanity. </p><p>"I see," he replied. "Although I am surprised that you're doing well in Healing." </p><p>"I was too," Amity agreed. "But it's pretty effortless so far; I've even been experimenting with the spells a bit to see what I can do with them." </p><p>"That's good. I didn't want you to think I was forcing you into something you weren't suited for, like Willow Park's parents tried to do to her, as I heard."</p><p>"No, no, no, no," Amity cut in. "I <em>like</em> Abomination magic. I <em>like</em> being the powerful leader. And I'm really good at it. But I also like being gentle and caring for others, and who's to say I can't do both?" </p><p>"That's true..." Alador agreed. The subtle fear in his daughter's eyes that still lingered there was offputting, but this wasn't the time for pity. </p><p>"Father...?" Amity motioned, picking up that something was wrong.</p><p>"Where do we stand with each other, Amity?" Alador asked, almost fearful. "Do you still hate me? Because of how horrible I was?" </p><p>If Amity was surprised by the sudden shift in discussion and tone, she didn't show it. "I can't say for sure, Dad. I mean, part of me does hate you for enabling all the abuse I went through in my life, but at the same time, another part of me loves you like all girls love their dads, 'cause I know now how similar we both are, if that makes sense?" She was knotting her hands together in her lap as she spoke. "So, I guess that I hate you and love you at the same time? And if it helps, I feel that exact same way towards Ed and Em." </p><p>"I understand," he replied, relief and understanding coursing through him. "I know I'm not the best, and... I... regret all the mistakes I made." Damn it, why couldn't he just say 'sorry'? What was so hard about one five letter word? "But I am working to do better, to be better. I hope you'll allow me to."</p><p>The sound of footsteps reached his ears, just before Amity wrapped him in a hug. "Thanks, Dad. I mean it. Of course I'll allow you to be better; it could all be far worse." </p><p>Returning the hug, Alador felt the sting in his soul once again. It was painful and and beautiful all at once, to hold such an amazing witch in his arms, who called him 'Dad' and hated and loved him equally. </p><p> </p><p>Their interactions that morning had led to Amity being a bit late for school. Thus, Alador had flown her to Hexside himself on Venator, dropped her off, and set off to go talk to the Clawthorne sisters. Before he took to the air again, he saw the human Luz greet Amity at the entrance to the school. </p><p>Landing Venator in the forest, Alador began the short walk over to the 'Owl House', as it was lovingly referred to. The tall, cone shaped trees rustled in the gentle wind, and the rising sun sparkled through. Alador wondered if he'd catch a glimpse of Amity's human girlfriend as she made her way to Hexside, but he didn't see a flicker of motion. These woods were strangely peaceful for the Isles; maybe that was why Edalyn had settled herself here. </p><p>Alador found himself reflecting on his opponents and predecessors, who had proved no match for the machinations of espionage. <em>And what else should I have expected? Witches like that, too caught up in playing fair to win, and too scared to get their hands dirty... even Grandfather, whose honor weighed him down like a suit of lead armor... and I am so sorry for that, but both my mothers and Odalia devour such people for breakfast, sometimes literally.</em></p><p>The only way to beat Odalia was to play her game better than her, and that was not something most were cut out for. Alador may well have been awful at dancing for most occasions, but <strong>this</strong> dance he knew. </p><p>Emerging into the clearing next to the cliffside where the house was situated, Alador beheld the house and found it rather normal, like something found out in the country. Given his history with Eda, he'd expected a horrifying illusion to scare people off, or a vicious guardian monster in the front garden. </p><p>The thing that caught his immediate attention was the owl head on the front door, gazing at seemingly nothing with beady black eyes that bore into the soul. </p><p>Or maybe <em>that</em> was her house's guardian. Hiding in plain sight. </p><p>Feeling a yawn coming, Alador closed his eyes and let the long breath out. When he opened his eyes again, the owl head seemed closer.</p><p>Blink...</p><p>...and even closer.</p><p>Was it a trick? Or was it alive? </p><p>"I don't even know anymore," Alador sighed to himself, closing his eyes and pinching the bridge of his nose.</p><p>"OH, BUT I DOOOOOO," an extremely irritating voice piped up. Alador felt the awful sensation of moist, oily feathers against his head, and recoiled like he'd been shot.</p><p>"HI, I'M HOOTY!" the voice chirped out. "ARE YOU HERE TO BE MY FRIEEEEEND, HOOT HOOT?" </p><p>Alador's mind caught back up, and realised that the voice was coming out of the black eyed owl head now right in front of him. As it stared at him with a dumb smile, he looked behind to see that it had extended out like a tube of cookie dough from the doorframe.</p><p>"Now that's much more in line with her style," Alador observed, realising he was now encountering her front guard.</p><p>"HMMMMMM?" the creature asked, slowly pushing its face against Alador's and causing some of those blasted feathers to get stuck in his hair and beard. </p><p>Roughly shoving it away like he was shoving a temperamental pet, Alador regained his composure. "I'm here looking for someone."</p><p>"WELL, YOU CERTAINLY FOUND ME, HOOT HOOT!" </p><p>Alador could <em>feel</em> the veins throbbing on his face, but he made himself relax. "No, I meant the woman who lives in this house. The Owl Lady?"</p><p>"WHOOOOOOT?"</p><p>"Your master?" The thing shook its face back and forth in what was most likely a no. </p><p>"Eda the Owl Lady?" Again, no.</p><p>"Edalyn Clawthorne?" Yet another no, still looking at him with that dumb, punchable face. </p><p>Alador could now feel his eyebrows twitching of their own accord at the antics of this thing. "Who even fucking <em>does</em> live here, then?" </p><p>"OH, IT'S EDA, KING, LUZ, LILITH, AND GOOD OLD HOOTY! HOOT HOOTY HOOT!" </p><p>With that last part, something inside the Blight patriarch snapped.</p><p>Some fucking how, this hooting creature 'Hooty' had caused years worth of internal discipline to evaporate within Alador like they'd been snapped out of existence. Just like that. (It had taken longer for him than it did for Amity.) </p><p>With a motion like a striking wolf, Alador clamped his jaw tightly on the bird tube and tore. A good sized wood chunk came out in his sharp-fanged mouth... and it tasted disgusting. </p><p>"HOOT!" the house demon whined as he bit down, trying to squirm out of his grasp. "HOOT!" He managed to pull away and retreat to the door frame as Alador spit out the chunk of wood he'd ripped out. "YOU LOOK LIKE THE SCARY GIRL... YOU'RE WHERE SHE GETS IT FROM!" </p><p>Evening out his ragged breaths, Alador cleaned the feathers out from his mouth and beard, and combed his hands through his hair to return it to normal. The house demon was screeching into the house about him, before returning to the state Alador found him in. </p><p>The door did swing open as he approached this time, the house demon having been properly scared of him.</p><p>"Hello?" A small, skull wearing demon stared up at him. Its bright yellow and purple eyes were unblinking, one of the horns on its head was broken, its short tail was incredibly fluffy, and a soft, stuffed pink bunny rabbit was in its little arms.</p><p>"Um," Alador muttered, much more hesitant after the chaos that was the front guard. "I'm here to see your master?" </p><p>"The King of Demons has no master!" the furry demon boldly declared, as if insulted. "All you fools will soon bow before me!" </p><p>Alador suppressed an urge to roll his eyes. Obviously this was a young child, or someone with the ego of one. "Then, <em>Your Grace,</em> tell me, is there anyone else currently here?" </p><p>He seemed unfazed. "My most loyal subjects are absent from this house, but the recent defection is most definitely here!" </p><p>"Alador?"</p><p>All the breath went out of him; he knew that voice just as much as his own. He dared to look up, and he saw her.</p><p>Her puffy mane of dark red hair was now dead straight and a cold navy blue colour, with a light grey stripe across one side of it, though it did seem to be slightly curling out once again. She wore a dark blue woollen turtleneck jumper and a flowy black skirt that gave her a rather bookish look, as though she belonged in a library. All that was needed to complete that look were her old glasses. Speaking of which, they were now gone from her face, and her eyes were slightly different. One was still that beautiful shade of cyan that reminded him of a vast, calm ocean, but the other was now the same grey colour that marked her hair, reminding him of a far stormier sea. </p><p>She was still enchanting, even after all this time. In fact, maybe even more so. She was elegant, regal, composed, a far cry from the shy, loving, bright girl he fell for. Time had clearly chipped away at her, like it had for him.</p><p>And she felt the same way. He could see it in her face. </p><p>Before he could speak or move, Lilith made sure they were alone. "King, could you go out and pick up some more groceries for us?" Lilith asked, in that soft voice of hers. </p><p>"Nyeh, why do I have to be your glorified errand boy?" the little demon whined, in a way that sounded exactly like a five year old Emira or Edric, complaining that others could do their chores. </p><p>"Because you're the least noticeable out of the four of us," Lilith countered, grabbing some lint-covered money from the nearest table. "And if you do, I'll give you extra for treats!" she added, sounding just like an encouraging mother. </p><p>The demon 'King' perked up at that, eagerly cupping his paws as the money was placed in them. "You got it! All the doughnuts will soon be mine!" He let out an odd kind of giggle as he scampered out the door. </p><p>As it slammed shut behind him, Alador found his body moving of its own accord. Before Lilith could do anything else, he pulled her in very tightly, deeply inhaling as he nuzzled his face into her hair. She still smelled of sea salt and lavender, even after all this time. </p><p>Lilith had simply frozen at what was happening. She didn't deserve this... right? She couldn't accept it... right? She should suffer for what she did... right? No one in their right mind could love her... right?</p><p>Before she could spiral any further, Alador ended the moment. As he heard the door opening, he quickly pulled away, just in time to see Edalyn returning from her newfound motherly duties. Upon seeing him, her demeanour shifted to her usual cocky and teasing one.</p><p>"Well, well, look what the raven dragged in. The big stoic dog himself, the Aladog!" </p><p>"Edalyn, please. I was sick of that nickname years ago and I'm still sick of it now." His mood had automatically switched to the one he always had when it came to Eda: </p><p>Done. With. This. <em>Shit.</em></p><p>"Oh, still a mean son of a bitch, I see? Well, in that case, I got just the thing." Eda reached into her pocket, and pulled out a single piece of treakill toffee -- Alador's favourite.</p><p>"For the love of the Titan, Edalyn," he sighed out, already tired of her antics. "Don't." </p><p>Eda completely ignored him. "You want the treat? You want the treat, boy?" she taunted, shaking the little lump of sugar in her hand, sounding exactly like a parent teasing their child, or dog. "Go get it!" she finished, throwing it right over his shoulder.</p><p>Lilith caught it with ease, rolling her eyes at her overgrown toddler sister.</p><p>Then an idea came to Alador. "Oh, right, I forgot; you're supposed to use her language when speaking to her." Clearing his throat, he began to speak again. "Hoot? Hoot, hoot? Hoot? Hoot, hoot?" </p><p>The grin vanished from Eda's face as Alador continued to hoot at her, while Lilith barely suppressed her laughter. And to make matters worse for her, when Alador paused his hooting, Owlbert picked up as if replying to the Blight, with a few little hoots of his own. </p><p>Noticing this, Alador bared his smile -- his real one, the one that bared all the teeth in his jaw and would get him smacked in the face for showing it around his mothers -- and leaned closer to Owlbert. "What's that? Your master is an immature fool who breaks laws and wreaks havoc just for the kicks?"</p><p>The little owl hooted, smirking. "She is? Well, I'm so sorry you're stuck with her, little one. You deserve so much better."</p><p>"And you've still got a plank bolted to your spine. What are you even doing here anyway?" Eda shot back, arms folded in a very displeased expression. "I don't exactly keep doggy treats here."</p><p>"Well, I just wanted to catch up, now that I don't have a horrible creature in my way."</p><p>"Oh yeah, I heard," Eda muttered. "I don't blame you; if she scars your kid like that for being honest, what would she have done to you?" </p><p>Alador nodded. And they didn't need to know that she had threatened to do far worse. </p><p>Lilith broke the short silence that had followed. "Would you like a cup of tea? Is Thornroot still your favourite?"</p><p>"Yes and yes," Alador said as he took a seat on the old sofa. Lilith left for the kitchen, and Eda slumped down next to the Blight, as if nothing had changed.</p><p>"So yeah, she's been crashing here ever since the Conformatorium thing," Eda explained. "Was rough going at first, 'cause she was sure I wanted to kill her, but it'd take a lot more than what she did to get there. I still gotta convince her sometimes that I don't hate her for it."</p><p>Alador was about to ask what 'it' was, but he was interrupted by the front door opening again. </p><p>"Dad?" It was Amity's voice. Head darting up, he saw her and her human girlfriend in the doorway, surprised at him being there. </p><p>"What ya doing back here, Luz?" Eda asked.</p><p>"Well, we got into the building," the human explained as she shut the door behind her, "but we saw that a bunch of fairy dragons had broken out of the cages and wrecked shop. So, we weren't gonna stick around for that." Then her gaze landed on Alador, and seeing the resemblance he had to his children, Luz stiffened like she'd just heard some very troubling news. "Whoa; you must be Papa Blight, then." </p><p>He nodded. "That I am. I've been hoping to meet you in person, Luz. Separate truth from lie." </p><p>"Okay. What's Amity told you about me?" </p><p>"That you have the mind of half a witch, but the heart of a hundred?" Eda laughed at how accurate that was. "And that you belong to my daughter now, even if you don't realise it?" Amity broke into her fiercest blush yet; she'd called Luz her dummy around her father, and didn't even notice. </p><p>Luz just giggled. "That's right, yeah."</p><p>Alador leaned forward, and laced his hands together. "I'm also told you have a mother back home in the human realm? And that it's just the two of you at home?" She nodded. "What is it that she does, exactly? That detail slipped through the cracks." </p><p>"Oh, she's a nurse." Upon seeing Alador's blank expression, Luz quickly noticed that nurses weren't really a thing on the Boiling Isles, and clarified. "Healing."</p><p>"Ah, I see," Alador nodded. </p><p>Luz gave a nod of her own, and then a subtle smirk. "Yeah, but that's the mom I have that isn't Eda."</p><p><em>That</em> surprised Alador. "You what?!" He pointed wildly at Eda. "You? A <em>mommy?</em> Did the universe flip upside down while I wasn't looking?" </p><p>"Hey, just 'cause I keep taking in dumb kids by the boatload doesn't make me a mommy!" Eda seemed to force out the last word, as if it was sickly.</p><p>"Nah, all the other stuff does, Mom!" Luz cut in, before addressing Alador. "We've all started calling her 'Mommy' now; she hates it if it doesn't come from me."</p><p>Eda nodded. "Indeed I do." </p><p>"Right." Alador turned to look at Amity, who'd stayed silent through the interaction and whose jaw was hanging open. "Amity?"</p><p>Picking her jaw up from the Boiling Sea floor, Amity replied, "You're pretty close to Eda and Lilith."</p><p>"Not exactly; we were her glorified lackeys a lot of the time," Lilith cut in, bringing everyone their cups of tea. "Always dragging us into her latest scheme, bribing us with this, that, and the other thing."</p><p>"How'd you guys meet?" Luz gasped. "Are we going to learn the <em>backstory?</em>"</p><p>"Take a seat, and I'll tell you," Alador told her. Lilith passed everyone a mug of tea, and wedged herself in between Alador and Eda, while Luz and Amity took up positions on the carpet. </p><p>"Well, everyone get comfortable. This is going to be a big one," Alador began, as he launched into his story.</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0003"><h2>3. Phase Two: The Brain, the Basketcase, and the Criminal</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>"...And these children that you spit on as they try to change their worlds are immune to your consultations. They're quite aware of what they're going through..." -- David Bowie.</p><p>
  <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4gLVqjIvokc">Shattering window.</a>
</p><p>Friday, April 7, 1989. Hexside School of Magic and Demonics. Bonesborough, The Boiling Isles. </p><p>Almost twenty years since Belos declared himself Emperor. </p><p> </p><p>The sun was low in the sky, rising slowly and casting the Isles in a soft light, like an old, knitted blanket. It was the little things like that that Alador Blight appreciated often in his life. The soft, warm breeze, the way the sunlight filtered through the leaves, the sounds of the morning creatures, even the earthy nature smell, all of it was comforting in some kind of way.</p><p>In recent months, Hexside had felt more like a place of safety than his own home. Blight Manor, despite being where he grew up and where he'd lived all his life, was cold, dark, crushing, and menace seemed to fill its walls. </p><p>His school had become his sanctuary, against his will. Which was funny, because it was also where he had to face the embodiment of Hell, with cold eyes and whose soul carried nothing but malice, who he was forced to be friends with.</p><p>And he could see her now, as he walked up the brick path to Hexside's front door. Her hair was green, and easily visible from this distance. She was pale as death, making him wonder how often she saw the sun. And her eyes were a different shade of green...</p><p>"Ah, Alador," the voice of Hell called out. "Good to see you." </p><p>...poisonous. The words <em>cold</em> and <em>mean</em> didn't quite suit her. Every time she looked at him, it was as if she was holding the utmost contempt no matter what. </p><p>It only took mere seconds for Alador to mask himself and his face. He turned to face her and her group, making sure to remain neutral. </p><p>Odalia's uniform was perfect, just like all her other fine silk clothes. Not a wrinkle or dirt speck in sight. Her makeup cut with an edge like the sword at his side, and her hair was pulled into a perfect bun, as usual. It still astounded Alador why she had a gift for the Oracle Track, and thus ended up there. Illusions would be perfect for someone like her, who made sure to only present perfection no matter what lay underneath. </p><p>The group behind her wasn't much better; full of equally privileged and entitled shits who never improved as a result of a prejudiced set of teachers who rigged tests. And worse? No one actually had the spine to tell them it was wrong, or show them a better path. Meaning they would likely remain that way for the rest of their lives, and pass it onto the children unlucky enough to be spawned from them.</p><p>Alador's hand went instinctively to the sword at his side, as if it was one of the few things in this universe that wasn't actively plotting against him. "What do you want?"</p><p>"Oh my, you're certainly in a mood." Mockery was oozing out of her voice's every pore. "I need your help in teaching a lesson to one of the commoners who thinks she can stand on our level. Just something simple; stealing her lunch money."</p><p>"What? Why would I do that?" Alador wouldn't find out until much later that the reason was to see if he was actually cut out to be genuine bully material.</p><p>"Please, the girl is beneath us all. It'll help them to fall in line." </p><p>"And what? You think that's a valid reason?" </p><p>Odalia's expression closed, and the look she shot him could only be described as <em>toxic.</em> "I'll give you a reason; if you cared about me, you would do it." She moved closer, and the metaphorical knife was at his throat. "But I don't have to question your loyalty. Do I?" </p><p>Alador was under no illusion; as much as he didn't like it, Odalia had ears in many places, and could take him out as easily as she could slap a fairy. He'd have to have more in place before he tried to go against her. "Could I at least have something to get the locker open?"</p><p>"Here!" one of her lackeys called from the back -- a pink haired triclops called Stella Anodyne -- with a vial of a blue potion in her hand.</p><p>"Oh, thank you Stella," Odalia thanked, taking the potion and passing it to him. </p><p>It was a short walk to the locker in question, and the group hung back to force Alador forwards. A red-haired girl had just left the locker, leaving it wide open for the taking.</p><p>He felt sickly the whole time, like he was covered in some horrible substance. It got even worse as he poured Stella's potion into the locker, opening it up. </p><p>The inside was incredibly Spartan, with only books and a couple of pictures inside. But because he didn't want to remain there any longer than he had to, Alador grabbed the little coin purse and shoved it in his pocket, shut the locker back up, and stalked off. He shot a look over his shoulder, and saw that group smirking at him like he'd just done something right. </p><p>In fact, he was so focused on not thinking about what he'd just done that he ran into someone far too friendly and generous for their own good. <em>They'll get eaten alive.</em> </p><p>"How's it going?" the heavyset, dark-skinned boy asked. It was Henry Park, along with his glasses-wearing boyfriend, Caleb -- who was the very definition of gay panic around his crush. </p><p>"It's going," was Alador's short, succinct reply. </p><p>"You sure? You usually sound a lot less dead inside."</p><p>"It's fine." </p><p>Henry and Caleb looked like they both wanted to say more, but a very distinct scream cut them off. Alador had never been more thankful for the bell than at that point. Moving sharply, he left the two there and moved into class, sitting at his usual seat.</p><p>The coins in his pocket clinked a little as he sat down, reminding him of what he'd done. But it wasn't as if he could just tell the truth; Alador knew her word would be believed over his, especially where a certain pair of women were concerned. They were the ones who forced her onto him, after all. </p><p>
  <em>He knew what he had to do. Stand as ramrod straight and tall as his ten year old frame could. Bow at the waist, arm pressed to his torso, shoulders back. Have a composed face; not be afraid.</em>
</p><p>
  <em>He isn't afraid, at least.</em>
</p><p>
  <em>Lord C'baoth Graves (pronounced sa-bye-oth) stood before him, tall, broad, and cold. The very image of what an imposing menace should be. His face was dark, and lined, and regal to the point of arrogance as he studied him, and his predator-like green eyes held a mix of curiosity and disdain, though the former more than the latter. </em>
</p><p><em>"He is handsome enough, Joanna," Lord Graves said. His voice was piercing, cold, an entity all its own trying to worm its way into your mind. No, Alador </em>isn't<em> shivering. "What about his academic record? How good is it?" </em></p><p>
  <em>"It's flawless, C'baoth," answered Lady Blight -- the one born a Blight. "You'll find him very approveable. Hexside's staff give him high praise, and we didn't even have to bribe them." </em>
</p><p>
  <em>The praise doesn't warm Alador through as it likely should've. It's because he was bought up since birth to be the best of them all. To be smart, powerful, free of mental ailment, and utterly without mercy. And he won't fail that task.</em>
</p><p><em>No, scratch that, he </em>can't<em> fail that task. </em></p><p>
  <em>"Show me one of your abominations, boy," Lord Graves commanded, in that cold tone. "Please," he added, purely as an afterthought. </em>
</p><p>
  <em>After hearing the word 'please', Alador extended his hand, and drew a perfect spell cirlce. The magic from his heart tingled a little at his fingertip as the magenta spell crackled into existence.</em>
</p><p>
  <em>And an abomination, made from violet goop, rose from the abyss known only as extra velum. It was perfectly formed, and in no danger of crumbling. He hoped this made up for the fact that it was only about three feet tall.</em>
</p><p>
  <em>And, even better, his voice doesn't shake. Not one bit. "Abomination, bow." </em>
</p><p>
  <em>In sync, both Alador and his abomination executed a perfect bow towards Lord Graves. Then they both returned to a standing postion, Alador resuming a perfect posture. Squared shoulders, a face that held nothing, spine straight as if a plank was bolted to it, and not a single shake. </em>
</p><p>
  <em>He could feel his mother smirking in approval behind him, and Alador doesn't know what to make of it. It should be good; it would lead to warmth and approval, and lead away from the dark pit that is failure. He chose to ignore the confusion, and focus on Lord Graves' face, currently examining him and deep in thought. </em>
</p><p>
  <em>Eventually, Lord Graves murmured out, "You have done well with him. I think this one might just have the chance to rid your reputation of the black mark left on it by your parents, Lady Blight." </em>
</p><p>
  <em>All Alador could do is nod indifferently, as what could have been relief washes through his mother. He took this moment to examine the study he was in; dark, sparse, but well furnished, and a faint scent of what could have been candles in the air. The only light bled through an intricately made stained glass window. </em>
</p><p>
  <em>Lord Graves turned his head, and called for someone named 'Catelyn' to come in. And it was only seconds later that Alador realised that that was Lady Graves' name. Over to the right, the door to the study opened, and Lady Blight walked in, followed by a girl that resembled her rather closely.</em>
</p><p>
  <em>In a certain light, Lady Catelyn Graves could be considered beautiful. It was a glacial kind of beauty, like the beams of the sun glittering through dead tree branches. Long, thick emerald hair, high cheekbones, sharp jaw, and her eyes were amber, like a topaz gemstone. And Alador couldn't quite put his finger on it, but she had something scary about her that made him shiver.</em>
</p><p>
  <em>The girl next to her, looking at him with nothing except judgement and disgust, wasn't any better.</em>
</p><p>
  <em>Just like her mother, she was pretty in a certain light -- and her hair was that exact same shade of emerald green.</em>
</p><p>
  <em>And she had her father's eyes.</em>
</p><p>
  <em>Lord Graves was now lightly draping an arm around her shoulders, as if reminding Alador that no one was awful all the time. "Alador, allow me to introduce my daughter, Odalia. Your parents tell me that you are inexperienced on the social front, and require assistance. She is going to provide it. Odalia, this is Alador Blight. You are to integrate him into your social circle, and make sure he understands the social arts like you do." </em>
</p><p>
  <em>Odalia was looking over at him now, her green eyes inspecting him like a new toy behind her turned up nose. </em>
</p><p>
  <em>All Alador could say was, "It is an honour, my lady." His mother was once again smirking in approval.</em>
</p><p>
  <em>Odalia gave a subtle smirk. "Oh, yes it is." </em>
</p><p>
  <em>How the hell did someone so petite make that sound as scary as it was?</em>
</p><p>Alador shook his head and forced himself out of his reverie. He had work to do.</p><p> </p><p>The day, like most, had been nothing short of torture thus far. But then again, it was better than most others had been.</p><p>He'd had more than enough time to finish drinking the energy rejuvination potion he'd packed, leaving him ready for the day. </p><p>He'd aced all the tests that week, and had a perfect report card to ward the two women calling themselves his mothers off his back. </p><p>All of this with only four jostles in the hallways. </p><p>His Abomination professor even had a few words of praise for him.</p><p>And now, Alador was glad to finally get some respite from Odalia and her lackeys as he sat down in the cafeteria, about to eat something at last.</p><p>His lunch was simple, consisting of sandwiches, a small canister of soup, a couple bunches of thornberries, and a bar of chocolate. His grandmother used to make him something more substantive, as well as make the manor feel a bit more like a home; placing her plants in all the right places around the building.</p><p>She didn't do anything anymore, on account of being dead for two years now. Neither Alador nor his grandfather expected sympathy for it; death was the fate of all warriors.</p><p>Alador found himself remembering -- one of his favourite things to do growing up was sit on his grandfather's lap next to the fireplace at night, and listen as he told him stories of the war that he'd won. </p><p>The war to unify the Isles and end the Savage Ages had raged on for two years. Lords and ladies great and small had swarmed like moths to Belos' cause, others still chose to oppose. The Blights, one of the most powerful of the old families, had chosen to stay out of the fighting, ignoring the pleas from unifiers and rogues alike. </p><p>The most prominent, outspoken, and powerful opponent to Belos was a man by the name of Aegar, self-styled as Warden of the Isles. Some had considered him to be the only chance at stopping Belos from taking over the Isles. And he thought his god had answered his prayers when Lord and Lady Blight, Alador's grandparents, had arrived at the gates of his stronghold with an army ten thousand strong, professing loyalty. Even if they were only there thanks to a whistleblower. </p><p>Instead, the city was sacked and Aegar was killed. Belos himself went personally to Lord and Lady Blight that same morning, and gave them high honours and office in exchange for fealty. </p><p>(The day had been July 20th, 1969. Hilariously, that had been the day humans celebrated the first of their own walking on the moon. It was fascinating to Alador; a race of magicless beings had managed to make a metal box fly for thousands of miles through an evironment where nothing could survive, all to transport a trio of them to their own natural satellite.) </p><p>Their actions had been marked as traitorous by almost all the wild witches who were left. The fact remained, though; almost all of these people around Alador owed their lives to Charles and Lena Blight. Even if they weren't ever going to know why. </p><p>"What do you mean you don't have any?" came a shout from the front, ripping Alador out of his thoughts. He looked up, and found that it had come from a girl a couple years younger than him with a puff of bright orange hair. Her voice was boisterous and stupidly loud for someone of her size.</p><p>And to make matters worse, the girl she'd just shouted that at was the girl that Alador had been forced to steal from. The coins were still weighing in his pockets like they were made of lead. </p><p>"I know I bought it this time! I searched right through my locker, and it wasn't there!" cried the older girl. Her voice was warm and melodious, and it sent chills down Alador's spine. She must've been his own age.</p><p>The two girls looked uncannily like sisters; the younger one now shouting at the cafeteria staff. "Can you not give us something now, and we'll promise to pay you back tomorrow? Anything?" </p><p>"What can I tell ya, kid?" The cafeteria staff shrugged, annoyed to be dealing with her. "That's not how the rules work." </p><p>The orange fluffball growled as she shot the staff member a death glare, before leaping onto a table to address the various students baring witness to the fiasco. </p><p>"You see this?" she shouted, pointing a yellow-sleeved arm at the staff. "This is what happens when the system fucks you over! They grind us to dust under their wheels!" </p><p>The older girl, who also sported the yellow sleeves and leggings of the Potions Track, had also gotten up onto the table, and was trying to calm her down despite the murmurs from the crowd rising in volume as they started agreeing with her.</p><p>Looking at them alongside each other, Alador could easily tell the two were sisters; they had the same sharp, triangular chins, the same pale shade of skin, the same floof of hair that was some shade of red, even the same shape eyes -- even though the older one's were cyan and the younger one's were gold. </p><p>The older one was failing to get the younger one to stop, despite the older one's growing sense of desparation. And it all cresendoed with the younger one shouting a command Alador had heard many times before.</p><p>"Abominations! Rise!" </p><p>To Alador's pure shock, several lumps of violet-coloured goop began to form all over the room, becoming various kinds of abominations. Though they all seemed to have different outcomes; different colour eyes, different structural integrity, various sizes, even what looked like different components used in creation. </p><p>It shouldn't even have been possible; the links between Potions and Abominations were rare at best. Not to mention how mixing magic like that was something outlawed by the Emperor. But there it was, and almost everyone else seemed to be just as shocked as he was. It almost looked like raising an army of the undead.</p><p>He didn't catch exactly what the girl commanded, but he could see them moving to pick up students, or even bits of food. Realising exactly what they were doing, Alador threw his lunch into his bag and kicked over the table, diving behind it just before a lump of food thudded into the wall behind him. </p><p>Chaos sprang up all over. The air was filled with flying objects, people were being thrown about like luggage, and the younger girl at the centre of it all. The older girl, however, had decided to take them on, along with a few others. But they were losing the battle due to the sheer number of them -- and a later scream only confirmed it.</p><p>The older girl was down. And upon seeing her sister knocked over like that, the younger sister let out a curse and commanded one of her creations to go and stand over her.</p><p>The abomination, however, ignored the command completely, and its eyes turned a pure white colour. </p><p><strong>Oh, no!</strong> Alador knew instantly what that meant; the abomination was going rogue. He'd had more than a few of his own do that when he was learning, especially when trying to summon and control more than one at the same time. With this many, and at her level of skill, it was practically inevitable. </p><p>And rogue abominations were never good -- you were lucky if they just did simple things like iron your plants or hug your crush. In this scenario, carnage would erupt and spread over a huge area, and it was practically seconds away now.</p><p>Taking a breath, Alador drew Silencer from its leather sheath, and moved from behind his makeshift cover to the red-haired girl on the ground, even as her younger sister was shouting at the abomination. </p><p>Another tried to get in his way, but Alador had trained to use a sword, albeit with a style that focused on amputations and redirecting attacks.</p><p>As the abomination swung, Alador ducked low and cut the thing's leg out from under it, sending it to the ground. And before it got back up, he swung around and chopped the entire body in two. Still moving like running water, Alador reached the older girl and helped her to her feet, even as more and more of the summoned abominations began going rogue and ignoring the younger girl's increasingly desperate commands.</p><p>The two locked eyes, and there was a mutual understanding between them -- that kind of instant camraderie that people shared in desperate situations even when they knew almost nothing about each other. </p><p>There was now a mad charge for the exit, the two of them getting pulled up in it, only for the girl to use all of her strength to wade through and yell for her sister. Alador didn't get the name she'd shouted in the chaos, but found himself forcing through as well. </p><p>They both did get through into the open, and the younger girl who'd started this whole thing was racing for her older sister. She took a running leap to get over a knocked down table, but unfortunately another rogue golem threw a chair at her, knocking her down to the ground just as she made the leap.</p><p>As her sister rushed to her side, the rogue abomination that had knocked her down was now charging, leaving Alador to take it out. Drawing a spell circle, he called upon the training his grandfather had done with him. </p><p>He felt the familiar sensation of Abomination goop crawling across his arm, increasing his natural strength. As the fist completed around his own, he swung it around and smashed the charging golem in the chest, blasting it apart with ease. </p><p>His victory was short-lived, however, as the goop began to reform into the shape that he'd just punched out of existence. Not good.</p><p><em>"Move!"</em> he shouted, as he dispelled the goop around his arm, charging past the remains out of the room and through the corridors, both the sisters a blur of orange, red, yellow, and black just behind him.</p><p>The rogue abominations were starting to wreak havoc all throughout the school; throwing people around, tearing apart lockers, smashing classrooms, breaking apart the building, all of it. Everyone around them was running in a headlong flight for some kind of safety.</p><p>A more sturdy and stoic one, made out of a grey goop, was blocking their path, as they turned a corner -- as it turned its four eyed head to look at them, it began to slowly stomp towards them, each step thudding on the stone floor. But even as the sisters slowed down, Alador just charged forwards.</p><p>Sliding along the ground, Alador drew a quick spell circle and hit the rogue abomination with a telekinetic blast, staggering it. Swinging upwards with the flat of his drawn sword, Alador knocked the heavy right arm of the golem upwards, before leaping back onto his feet from the slide, twirling around, and severing the arm completely. And leaving it wide open for a huge side strike, separating the thing into two crumbling halves.</p><p>He completely missed the look of shock on the younger sister's face, and the look of admiration on the older sister's. He had already moved to the side to get one of the doors that led to the basement open, with the sounds of more rogue abominations coming their way.</p><p>With the sisters coming to their senses and rushing through, all three slammed the door shut and threw their backs against it, bracing it against the thuds from the golems on the other side. </p><p>"What the flying <em>fuck</em> is going on with your abominations?!" Alador shouted, the stress of the situation straining his nerves harder than ever before. </p><p>"I don't know!" the younger girl cried back. "They normally aren't this successful!" </p><p>"Normally?! Are you telling me that you do this shit on the regular?!" </p><p>"She does!" the older girl agreed from in between them. "I live with her, so I'd know!" She then turned to her sister and added, "And you didn't have to do all this just for me!" </p><p>"Yeah, I do! No sis of mine is gonna go hungry on my watch!" </p><p>Alador had had enough. "If that was all you fucking wanted, then have it!" he barked, as he reached into his trouser pocket and pulled out all of the coins, slamming them into the older one's chest.</p><p>"It was you?!" she gasped, completely thrown for a loop upon realising what it was, and promptly stowing it all into her own pocket. </p><p>"Why the hell would you do that?!" shouted the younger one in agreement. "Don't you rich pricks sneeze that amount every hour?"</p><p>"Obviously neither of you had to deal with an absolute, unfeeling <em>bitch</em> who has everything in her life wrapped around her finger!"</p><p>Before either of the girls could respond to that statement, the door started banging behind them, and all three struggled to hold it back, like they were in a horror movie, and the unkillable monster (or Darth Vader) was on the other side of the door they were blocking. </p><p>The wood was starting to warp from the pressure on one side, and the slightly rusted hinges were creaking out of their sockets. And then, nothing. As if the golems had just decided to move on. </p><p>There was silence, for a moment. Deafening, crushing silence where only the sounds of their harried, ragged breathing pierced the veil. It was torturous, and Alador could feel his heart trying to beat out of his ribcage. </p><p>Then a jagged piece of metal slammed through the wooden door, right next to the older girl's head. </p><p>She shrieked in fright as she leapt back from the door and turned to face it, Alador and her sister both doing the same. The rogue abominations must've found some metal tools used in the classrooms, and were now using them to hack through the door. </p><p>Alador's heart rate had once again jumped to lightspeed, as he turned and shot down the rusted iron staircase that led to Hexside's depths. The rattling of equally afraid footsteps just behind him told him that the sisters were right behind.</p><p>As he landed on solid rock, the sound of the door splintering completely could be heard; the abominations had made it through. The sound seemed to lend wings to their feet; the trio dashed down the corridor, the way lit only by the girls' light orb.</p><p>Rounding a corner, Alador reached the heater room. Seeing it as a good place to hide, he lunged for the door and pulled. But the door was heavy due to being made of steel, and the hinges were rusted; it was barely budging.</p><p>At least, before Alador saw two other pairs of arms helping him get it open just enough for them all to slip inside.</p><p>Now they were in the heater room. There was no source of light, and the hissing and gurgling of the huge heater meant that no one, not even if you screamed, could hear you outside. </p><p>Forcing the door shut, the three slammed against the wall and clapped out the light orb. Despite the heater, they could hear the golems right on the other side of the door, searching. No one dared to even breathe loudly.</p><p>Then, silence; they'd moved on. Alador waited a few more moments to make sure, then summoned another light orb. The first thing he saw was both the sisters, fearfully cradled in each other's arms.</p><p>"Holy shit," Alador whispered. "This is insane; it's like we're stuck in some kind of horror issue in a manga!"</p><p>The younger sister untangled herself from the older one's grip, and stood to face Alador. "I swear, I don't know why they're doing this. I don't know where the process went wrong; this shouldn't be happening."</p><p>"Well, that's reassuring; it isn't happening. So the next time a bunch of goop golems go rogue and take over the school, I can just close my eyes and pretend it's my imagination." Alador's tone of voice was indignant. "You better give me some answers, damn it!"</p><p>"Like what?!"</p><p>"What the hell did you put in the mixture, for a start?!"</p><p>"You know; basic stuff for abominations; lactite powder, lesser mushwart, fermented flame beetle sap, silverroot starch, arrowroot grain, monstrous flytrap nectar --"</p><p><em>"You what?!"</em> Alador's heart had frozen for a few moments upon hearing that; that was something you were most certainly not supposed to use. "What was that last part?!" </p><p>"The mixture wasn't holding together very well, so I used monstrous flytrap nectar to bond it together. I had to use a lot of it, 'cause it was a big mixture." She looked confused at his reaction.</p><p>"Well, no wonder it went rogue, you absolute ham sandwich!" Alador shouted, realising exactly what had gone wrong and where. Monstrous flytrap nectar was an ingredient used in Healing magic, meant to fix damaged memories and relieve symptoms of mental illnesses. If someone was dumb enough to pour it into abomination goop, it meant whatever came out of the vat would be guaranteed to not only reassemble itself whenever blown apart, but also eventually gain sentience and go rogue.</p><p>But at the same time, Alador now knew the perfect way to destroy them; rogue abominations made with monstrous flytrap nectar were highly susceptible to acids and other corrosive substances. Reading far ahead really did pay sometimes. </p><p>"Sorry!" the younger sister said, sarcasm dribbling from her mouth. "Not all of us are born and bred to be insufferable geniuses!" </p><p>"I'd hope not! No one should have to suffer like I have!" </p><p>"Suffer?!"</p><p>"What, you think it's easy to be a witch?! I have been working my whole life to get to the top, and I won't let all that work get undone by the likes of you!" </p><p>The older one sprang to her feet. "Both of you calm down! This isn't helping us beat them. And I don't know about you, but I don't want to just hide."</p><p>At that very moment, Alador was glad he'd been stuck with the two sisters; both of them were Potion students, and should easily be able to create something corrosive enough to destroy the rogue golems out there. "I agree; this way." </p><p>Moving slowly, sword drawn and every sense alert, he led the way out of the heater room with both the sisters following him. Unfortunately, they emerged on the other side of the school, nowhere near where they had to go. </p><p>"Shit," Alador muttered as he looked around. "We're nowhere near the Potions Track hall. We'll have to double back and go past the trophy cabinets." </p><p>"Huh?" asked the younger girl, even more baffled than before. "Why are we going there?"</p><p>"Because I've got a plan -- I know how to destroy those things." </p><p>"Even when we can't cut them up, blast them apart, or shoot them down?" the older girl asked, equally confused. </p><p>"Yeah -- we need acid. Something highly corrosive is what we need to use -- well, that or any other disintegration method. You're both potioneers; you must know what to make, right?" </p><p>"Oh, acid? Yeah, that is easy," the older one replied. "We got taught that just last year."</p><p>"Then follow me!" the younger one cut in, as she began moving down the hall. "I know a shortcut!" </p><p>She set off, seeming to trace the line of lockers before hitting a certain point, and making a motion like she was pulling a door open. To Alador's shock, it did open up like a door, and as he walked through, it revealed a huge spiral room with a vast multitude of doors lining the walls.</p><p>"Yeah, yeah, secret shortcut room," the younger sister muttered as she moved through, her older sister in tow. "Come on; we've got a school to save!" </p><p>Snapping himself out of it, Alador followed them into an empty room in complete disarray. </p><p>"Told you it'd work!" the younger girl shouted triumphantly. She then turned to Alador; "Go fetch one of the larger cauldrons, and set up a fire under it. We'll go get everything we need from the storage cupboard just down the hall." When Alador didn't budge, she groaned and folded her arms. "What is wrong with you now? You gone deaf?"</p><p>"Could you at least show some respect, now we're working together?" Alador pointedly replied, punctuating it with a glare.  </p><p>"Ugh, fine. Please," she begrudingly agreed. She and her older sister then skulked nervously away, as if anticipating more of the golems to ambush them. </p><p>Once they were outside, Alador rolled a large cauldron over, and twirled his finger to set up a roaring fire under it. The sisters were gone for a few more moments, gving Alador enough time to make a plan of engagement. Rogue abominations typically stayed near the place where they went rogue... had the school faculty called in support from the Emperor's Coven yet? It hadn't been that long since the golems were unleashed... that meant support could be anywhere, and they might not even be equipped to handle this. No, the trio were the school's best shot.</p><p>Speaking of, the sisters both came back into the room, carrying various different vials, bottles and loose ingredients in their arms, most of them unknown to Alador. </p><p>With only limited bickering, the two quickly concocted a highly potent corrosive substance, with all the consistency of soup. </p><p>Alador then explained, "Right... now we just need to find those abominations, get them in one place, and cover them in this."</p><p>"Easier said than done," muttered the younger girl, now even more out of her depths. "How do we even gather them all?"</p><p>"I don't know," agreed the older girl from her position near the classroom window. "I think we need to find a... oh my Titan, what is that?!" </p><p>All three rushed to the window looking out onto the front field; a majority of the rogue abominations had gathered there, and were now congeling into one solid form, with all the others rushing in.</p><p>"What the hell is it doing now?!" shouted Alador, almost at the end of his tether.</p><p>"You're the fucking abomination expert, genius!" the younger girl shouted back. "You tell me!" </p><p>"Holy Titan, look at it!" the older girl shouted over them both, drawing all their attentions to the field. </p><p>It now seemed as if all the golems created had formed into that one mass, and it was now taking shape in the form of one huge golem. The top of its head nearly reached Hexside's tallest tower spire. Its four eyes glowed a pure white, it threw back its head, and let out a huge, rumbling gurgle.</p><p><em>"Oh shit,"</em> both the sisters whispered, in perfect sync. </p><p>Alador was quickest to pull himself together. "Well, at least they're all in one place now. We stick to the plan." </p><p>"You what?!" He couldn't tell which of them had said that.</p><p>"You heard me! I'll keep it distraced, you two finish that and get it outside. We need to dissolve it to beat it!" </p><p>Not sticking around to see if they got the memo, Alador turned and charged full velocity towards the Abomination Track hall, to grab his pot of goop. He had a plan, and he was going to need it.</p><p>It was a hassle to get the vat out from the debris of the room, but easy once he was back in the corridors. Now, he was headed for the roof, to gain that crucial advantage: The High Ground.</p><p>The way to the roof would take him through the Construction Track hall. And as Alador dragged his vat of goop through, he paused right outside one of the senior classrooms. His plan, to form a huge abomination around himself and fight the rogue golem currently wreaking havoc, would be a lot easier with one of their power glyphs. </p><p>Yes, it would technically be mixing magic. But he was already going to face the music for this entire fiasco, so what was a little more breaking the law? </p><p>Taking a little moment to dive in, grab a power glyph sticker, and race back out, Alador leapt up the stairs to the roof, taking them two at a time and lugging the goop vat right behind. </p><p>Crashing through the door at the top, Alador raced across the roof and looked down at the front field. Both his allies were charging around like headless griffins, taking advantage of the roaring golem's lack of speed, but also in no position to strike back; they were too focused on not being crushed.</p><p>It was his chance.</p><p>Alador peeled the back off the sticker, and slapped it on his forehead. As he felt the tell-tale power surge coursing through him, Alador knew he only had five minutes until the power glyph ran out, and stopped working. That time limit was the power glyph's primary weakness, and the main reason why they weren't given to everyone. But five minutes was all Alador needed.</p><p>Clearing his mind, and reaching out to the vat of goop he'd bought up to the roof, Alador bought it towards him. As he felt it stick onto his back and begin to cover him, as if he was slowly sinking into it, he ran forward and leapt off the roof. Flipping forwards as he fell and the goop formed around him, Alador landed as if he'd just jumped off a wall, and rose to his full height as the abomination goop formed a full shell around him, and he struck an offensive pose.</p><p>The huge, rogue abomination stopped its roaring. Its gaze had been pointed at the ground, where the sisters were racing around in evasion. Now, it was gazing upwards, taking in its new opponent. One that now stood face-to-face with it, matching the height and size almost perfectly.</p><p>The rogue golem took several awkward steps backward. Then it let out another gurgling roar, and swung a huge arm at Alador's creation. But it was still as intelligent as a beast, and Alador did have a rough grip on fighting unarmed.</p><p>He blocked the swing with his left arm, and bought his right one around in a huge uppercut, separating the golem's head from its body and sending it flying like a Grudgby ball. Even as the golem reformed its head, it was thrown off balance by the punch, and lost control as it was knocked backwards and tripped over its own gigantic feet, tumbling to the ground.</p><p>Both the sisters were gawking in shock at the <em>kaiju</em> display. Along with the crowd watching from the school itself.</p><p>Taking a slight running jump, Alador leapt into the air, before coming back down in a wrestling takedown move, elbow first. The very Isles seemed to shudder as he impacted on the ground, and Alador heard something break apart under the crushing force of his strike. It was beginning to look a lot less structurally sound, and the glow in its eyes was starting to flicker like an old torch.</p><p>Rolling over, Alador got back upright and adopted an offensive posture once again. Only one of the golem's arms was still moving, and it was flailing around wildly as the legs thrashed about. Clearly, it was struggling to get back on its feet.</p><p>"Hey, you ugly pile of goop!" yelled a voice from the ground. Alador's head snapped to look; it was the younger sister, making her move. "Swing on this!" Large cauldron of bubbling acid levitating right beside her, she flung it at her rogue creation like a spear. It soared through the air and struck the abomination directly in the stomach. The potion ate through the goop as if it were boiling rain, dissolving it with ease. Moments after the cauldron hit the target, Alador thrust out his hand and gripped the golem in a choke hold, lifting it over his head and slamming it into the ground. The Isles shuddered again. There was a rupturing in the creation's form, and a glowing lump of goop shot out of its chest. The core had been ejected, in a last gasp attempt to regenerate. Before it could get very far, the older sister was ready and let loose a huge column of blue fire, nailing the retreating core like a clay pigeon. It disintegrated in an immensely satisfying display.</p><p>The crowd went wild.</p><p>Alador held his huge form for a few more moments, making sure that the pile of goop on the ground wasn't budging. After several baited breaths had passed, he confirmed it wasn't; it was over.</p><p>The waves of fatigue were setting in, and there were only twenty seconds of time remaining on the power glyph as Alador dissipated the goop surrounding him and deposited himself back at ground level. Ripping the now useless sticker off his forehead and throwing it aside, Alador turned to address his allies that had helped him achieve victory.</p><p>It was then that he actually started to notice the girl that Odalia wanted him to steal from -- and how absolutely beautiful she was. </p><p>Odalia was beautiful, in the same way that snow on dead trees is beautiful; glacial. </p><p>But this girl was a crackling fireplace on a cold winter's night. There was an aura around her that radiated comforting warmth, like large cups of hot chocolate, thick blankets, loving hugs, and snuggling up next to soft toys. Perhaps it was to do with her hair, dark red like a phoenix's wing. It looked <em>incredibly</em> soft and floofy; Alador really wanted to run his hands through it.</p><p>And then there were her eyes, behind those large glasses. They were a beautiful shade of cyan that reflected the oceans, the sky, the flowers in the manor's front garden, and the sapphires that his grandmother used to wear. They seemed to sparkle with humour, intelligence, maternal warmth, and an undercurrent of ferocity. </p><p>Enchanting was the only word that fit her. Alador was struck with a huge desire to understand her and her little sister, and bond with them. To that end, he moved over to where they were hugging each other in their victory, and cleared his throat to get their attention.</p><p>"We haven't been properly introduced, have we?" Alador stuck out his hand, still slightly sticky from the goop he'd encased himself in. "My name's Alador Blight." </p><p>The older girl shook his hand -- her one was unexpectedly soft and warm, attached to a gangly yet strong arm, and her nails were coated in a black polish. "I'm Lilith Clawthorne. And this is my little sister, Edalyn." </p><p>It felt good to finally put a name to that beautiful face... Lilith... it seemed to radiate an aura of warmth once again. </p><p>The younger girl - Edalyn - then barged past, to slap Alador on the back with a cackle. "That was totally wicked! Make room for the big dog, everyone!" she whooped.</p><p>"Edalyn, would it kill you to use my real name?"</p><p>"Yeah! You're Al or the Aladog from here on out. And just call me Eda; it's easier." </p><p>"Fine. And yes, it <em>was</em> totally wicked." </p><p>"It sure was," agreed Lilith, before noticing something coming from the school. All three turned to look, and Alador's blood ran cold.</p><p>It was Principal Bump, walking towards them.</p><p>"Looks like it's time for us to race the music." Eda muttered.</p><p>Alador let out one last groan for the road. "Face! It's <em>face</em> the music, you idiot!" </p><p> </p><p>This was the first time that Alador had been in the principal's office since his enrolment in the school, and he knew in his soul it wouldn't be the last. </p><p>He was sat ramrod straight in his seat as if ready to face judgement, on the left hand side. Lilith was in the middle, sitting rather normally as if she were at the dinner table. And Eda couldn't be more relaxed from her position on the right hand side, with her feet up on the principal's desk and balancing on her chair's back legs.</p><p>"Do you know why you're here?" Bump began, from behind his desk after the three had explained it all. </p><p>"Yes," Lilith answered. "We fixed our collective mess in a way so brave and stupid it's a miracle Hexside's still standing."</p><p>"Correct, but that's not what I'm interested in," Bump continued. "What I want you to do is think on your actions, and ask yourself why you did any of it." </p><p>Alador seemed to slump, devoid of the ability to care anymore. Leaning forwards on the desk, he got everyone's attention.</p><p>"Principal Bump, I speak for all of us when I say this: We get that we had to form the unlikeliest of alliances to save this damn school, because of what circumstances surrounded us three. What we did was pretty heroic, and stupid. But we think you're insane, making us explain why we did what we did. Why do you care, exactly? You see us as you want to see us; in the simplest of terms and the most convenient definitions. I'm a brain, Lilith's a basketcase, and Edalyn's a criminal. That's all the reason you need."</p><p>Silence followed it, before Bump responded with, "I see. With that in mind, please give me a moment to write this all up." </p><p>As the sound of Bump's quill scratching against the paper filled the air, Lilith and Eda shot Alador another look of admiration. Soon after, Bump turned the paper to show the trio the record of the day they'd just survived.</p><p>It read: "Incident #3421: At 1200 hours, Edalyn Clawthorne raised an army of abominations to start a food fight in the cafeteria after her sister Lilith's lunch money was stolen. The abominations then gained sentience and revolted against Edalyn, forming into one giant abomination and taking over the school. Edalyn, Lilith and the thief had to form an unlikely alliance to stop the giant abomination from destroying Hexside." </p><p>To Alador, it seemed airtight. It was ignoring <em>a lot</em> of things, but Eda seemed happy to take the blame, he himself wasn't mentioned by name, and Lilith was the undisputed reason. With all three nodding in agreement, Bump dismissed them and began copying it down, wanting to be left in peace.</p><p>It also meant Alador was alone again. With everyone being let out early, there was no reason to stick around. All he had to do was grab his bag back, and go.</p><p>He emerged into the afternoon air, ready to pretend as if it never happened. And yet, he found himself wishing that it didn't have to end, and they'd still think of him as friend material. </p><p>"Alador, wait up!" It was Lilith. She and Eda raced down the steps, closing the short distance to him. "Where you going?"</p><p>"Hold on, you still want me around?" This wasn't something he was prepared for.</p><p>"Well, yeah!" Eda agreed. "You think we're gonna abandon you? Hell no!" </p><p>"I'm surprised you didn't just throw me under the bus and blame me for it all," Alador confessed. It wasn't even a lie; it had in fact happened before to him in the past. </p><p>"No way!" Lilith cried out. "I'd never do that! <em>We'd</em> never do that! We want to get to know you a bit better; got anywhere you'd like to go after school?" </p><p>"Well, I do know a great place we can go."</p><p> </p><p>"Alador!" the owner of the seafood shop called out as he walked in, Lilith and Eda in tow. "Good to see you!" </p><p>"Hey, Azure," Alador replied. "It's great to see you, too." He hadn't ever bought anyone else he knew in here, but he was making an exception for Lilith and Eda; the first two friends he'd ever made on his own. </p><p>"Who're the girls?" asked the aquatic demon. He had a snout-like jaw full of sharp teeth, flipper-like hands and feet, smooth black skin designed for moving through liquids with a white patch on his front, and huge eyes the colour of onyx. </p><p>In short, the offspring of a witch and an orca. He wore loose khaki cargo pants and a plain black cotton shirt under an only slightly stained green apron. </p><p>Alador leaned against the counter. "The one with the glasses is Lilith, and the one who's more hair than flesh is Eda." </p><p>Azure laughed, a sqeaky, gurgling thing. "Alright! What's the order?"</p><p>Alador laughed too; he'd discovered The Ocean Breeze when he took a long route home from the library to maximise the time spent away from the manor. It did only serve seafood, and was mostly a dive, but he did love the place, with all the paintings of famous Isles landmarks on the walls. Not to mention how he could just be himself around Azure, the owner. "My usual for me, and a medium chips with battered jotal for them both. All on me."</p><p>"Alador, you don't have to--"</p><p>"Lilith, it's my place you're in. Besides, I sneeze that amount daily, don't I, Eda? It won't hurt my funds at all."</p><p>That shut down all the arguments. Once they'd got their food, Alador then took them to the bench over looking the sunset that he always ate it at. It was a place for him to escape from his horrible life for a moment, and now he could share it with others. His new friends.</p><p>"Alright! Now that we've caught us a big dog, interrogation can begin!" Eda said with her signature grin, pointing one of her chips at Alador dramatically.</p><p>"Edalyn, why do you have to be so impossible?" sighed Lilith, before turning to address Alador herself. "So, Alador, when you're not studying, what do you like to do?" </p><p>"For one," Alador began, "I'm not going to have a dog when I get my staff; it's going to be a scorpion. For two, I definitely like reading a lot of manga, for sure, and a whole bunch of other fiction in general."</p><p>"Dweeb," Eda muttered. Lilith jabbed her in the ribs. </p><p>The new trio of friends made small talk on a huge variety of subjects, discovering things about each other that would stick with them for years. Because little did they know, this was the start of something far greater.</p><p>With the evening chatted away, and goodnights exchanged, Alador made plans for them to meet up and spend a proper day together as friends. "I'll meet you at your house, 10 a.m. tomorrow. Dress accordingly and don't be late," he told them.</p><p>With scroll runes and addresses exchanged, the three went home. Alador even managed to dodge his mothers as he went to bed; another good thing to cap off the day.</p><p>For the first time in years, Alador Blight went to bed with his real smile on his face.</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0004"><h2>4. Phase Three: For a Few Kisses More</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>A rather comfortable silence had followed Alador's retelling, and he found himself wondering when the last time he'd felt that way was. To his surprise, the only one that came close was the last night he'd spent alone with Lilith before he was forced to cut her and his own friends off. His right arm twitched once again upon remembering that.</p><p>The human Luz was the one to break the silence with a question: "It sure does sound like you guys were close. D'you think of each other as... ah... family?" </p><p>"It's hard to say in her case," Alador said, stroking his beard and nodding towards Eda. "<em>Mommy</em> here was -- or more accurately, <em>is</em> -- a perpetual mooch, a source of endless teasing, completely immature, and can't use Bard magic to save her life." He ran a hand through his hair. "But at the same time, she's bright, loving, fiercely protective, and the best source of awful humour this side of the Boiling Isles." He turned to smile at Luz. "In another universe, you're certainly her daughter in blood as well as in name."</p><p>Eda groaned aloud again -- she really wasn't escaping that label of 'Mommy', was she? "Yeah, we were like family separated at birth around the time of those two dorks' senior year. I don't think there was a thing we didn't do together." Upon seeing Luz shoot a couple glances at Amity, Eda gave a laugh. "No, I didn't fall for him, kiddo. I didn't even consider it, not even at our most intimate."</p><p>Alador shook his head. "Here I thought you didn't actually like males in that way."</p><p>"Eh, I've always liked both," Eda noncommittally muttered with a wave of her hand. "And yeah, I've... slept around... but you don't need to hear that."</p><p>"I remember you saying that one of the things you hid away from here at the Owl House was your ex-boyfriends," Luz cut in.</p><p>"Did I? When?"</p><p>"The day we met?" Luz clarified, raising an eyebrow. <em>Wow, that day feels like a lifetime ago now.</em></p><p>"Yeah, well, I only said that 'cause the ex-girlfriends I've had haven't tried to hunt my home down when they want to kill me or beg me to come back."</p><p>"Yet," Lilith muttered. </p><p>"True, true," Eda agreed, nodding her head. "But Hooty's held them all off so far, and he ain't slowing down anytime soon." Her eyes then seemed to light up. "What about you, Lily? Got any vengeful lovers out there?"</p><p>Lilith grimaced, swallowing around the lump in her throat. "I haven't thought about romantic relationships in years, Edalyn." She didn't need to know yet how many years it was exactly.</p><p>Eda laughed her usual cackle. "You serious? Years? Alright, what about just simple... y'know..." She waggled her eyebrows, and the meaning couldn't be clearer.</p><p>Lilith made a sound of disgust, as Luz and Amity both blushed. "Edalyn! I never think about doing that until after at least the third date!"</p><p>Eda cackled again. "Alright, alright, fine! I won't judge. Anyways, why the long wait? You telling me that perfect, prissy, powerful Lilith <em>didn't</em> have all kinds of admirers fighting each other to win her hand?"</p><p>Lilith seemed to cringe a little, before letting out a small sigh. "There were. Despite my swift rise and changing my look, it took me a long time to establish the reputation I had. Before that point, I must've had about forty different letters from all kinds of admirers, some much nicer than others. A lot more would've come, if not for the fact that the last one was clearly sent by an incel and creepy enough to get me to take action; I bolted a notice to my door saying that all letters about matters that weren't work related would be burnt. And before you say anything else, I <em>did</em> actually burn them; they weren't worth keeping beyond that."</p><p>Eda sucked in a sharp breath. "<em>Ouch.</em> That is bad. Wait, hang on..." Understanding dawned on her face. "'The last one', you say?" A slow, teasing, cocky smile spread across her lips. "Are you telling me... you read all of them?!" </p><p>Lilith angrily grumbled something unintelligible before slowly curling into the fetal position.</p><p>That was all the proof Eda needed, as she let out another howling cackle. "You better pick up that scroll, because I fucking <em>called it!</em> Tell us! Was there <em>juice</em> in any of 'em? Any encouraging <em>photos?</em>"</p><p>"Eda, give her a break!" Luz cut in. </p><p>"Luz, it's okay," Lilith placated, before addressing her sister again. "None of them went into detail; the only one that did was the last, and that got me to stop taking in any more." She hesitated, as if afraid to keep going, but she pushed on. "A few of them, though, were actually nice to me. If it weren't for what I did and where I was, I might've even pursued some of them." She would've gone into what they said, but kept her mouth shut; Alador, Eda, Luz and Amity didn't need to know it -- or that she'd held onto a few of them, next to the drawing of her and Alador dancing.</p><p>
  <em>Whatever it takes.</em>
</p><p>"Your position, ay? Unbreakable, powerful, poised, menacing Emperor's Coven head, can't be seen with any weaknesses or dalliances?" As Eda leaned forward, a stiff and yet resigned nod was the only response. "Knew it; it really would ruin the image, wouldn't it?"</p><p>"The image. Yes, it sure would." Lilith seemed to twitch, as she shifted awkwardly from where she was sat. "Of course, I didn't make any friends either."</p><p>"Ah, 'cause you were too focused on being the best, huh?"</p><p>"Like me," Amity whispered in agreement.</p><p>"Yes, I was." Another uncomfortable shift. "And yet..."</p><p>Eda leaned even further forwards. "And yet...?"</p><p>"It's nothing."</p><p>"Like hell it's not."</p><p>"Edalyn, please!"</p><p>"Lily, come on! Who, or what, was standing in the way?"</p><p>"You!" Lilith finally spat, scowling at her sister. "My happiness didn't matter until I fixed what I did to you, and it still doesn't! When the Emperor told me he could heal you, I pushed everyone in my life away so I could get to the top and help you. And look where that got me."</p><p>Lilith winced right after and curled back in on herself, but the damage was done; Eda pulled back sharply and let out a long breath through her teeth, while Luz, Amity and Alador could only gape. Despite the Clawthorne sisters' relationship being better than before, the bond was still raw, tender and fragile when this specific topic got bought up. </p><p>"I never actually asked you why you did what you did, Lily," Eda slowly said from where she was sat on the sofa. "I know it was because you wanted to make sure you got into the Emperor's Coven, but that can't be it; there were a thousand other ways you could've cheated your way there -- even stolen a few of my tricks, if need be. Lily, what did I do to you to get you to do that?" </p><p>Silence lingered once again. Eda opened her mouth, about to rescind the question, but Lilith eventually responded, like she'd been waiting all this time to say it at last. </p><p>"I've always been jealous of you, Edalyn," Lilith whimpered out from the fetal position she'd curled herself into. "And I know I shouldn't be, but I can't help it. You've always been more powerful, easier to love, funnier, more confident, more beautiful, more worthy of being loved. You're all of the things I'm not, and you have everything I could only dream of having; a job that doesn't hurt others, a home you don't feel alone in, the love of the people, you even have a human daughter!" The tears had started to flow, at last. "I'm your big sister; I'm supposed to share your pain, tuck you in and read you bedtime stories, help you with your problems, and be there when your heart's broken with your favourite sweets. But how can I do that when you're better than me in every way, and you ended up doing all those things for me as well?" She curled even further in on herself, like an abused, neglected child. "That day, when we found there was only one spot available for the Emperor's Coven, I just snapped. I couldn't let you take that away from me. I wouldn't be a failure again; I had to be better at <em>something.</em> But I went over the line and just proved again that you're better than me; you always were." She couldn't look at any of them anymore. "I think I understand my name, at last. <em>Night Monster,</em> roughly translated from demon tongue. Because I am a night monster, and a horrible person." </p><p>That revelation barrelled through Eda's mind like Luz after a few too many shots of caffeine, coming into conflict with all the memories she ever had of Lilith, good and bad alike. Where before she was seeing it with only one viewpoint that rendered it a series of black and white images, now she was also looking at them with not just her eyes, but Lilith's as well. This made them all bright and vivid with understanding and realization that just wasn't there before now. </p><p>Never once had Eda considered that <em>that</em> was how Lilith felt towards her. At the forefront of her mind was the Covention, not just because it was kinda fresh in her mind still. Lilith had been so desperate, even after all this time, to one-up Eda that she resorted to cheating with a power glyph, just to make sure her own student (her kid at this point) could beat a then powerless human. And how had Eda reacted? By mocking her and pouring out a slew of terrible rhymes until Lilith had snapped and attacked her. All the insults, the slights, the jabs, even the offers of help, they all served as one hell of an explanation to the mess of emotions Eda was feeling, the anger, the sadness, the admiration, the sympathy, all crushed together into a single orb labelled 'Sis'. It shed light on how broken she'd been.</p><p><em>No.</em> Eda's mind sharply corrected. <em>She's not broken, just hurt. And right now, it's because the only person in this house that hasn't forgiven her, is herself.</em></p><p>"First off," Eda began, "just 'cause I was better than you at magic doesn't mean I didn't look up to you, Lily; I was jealous of you, too. You had everything in your life planned right down to every detail, and I didn't even know what I should have for dinner each night. I was wasting my talent on nothing, and you drove yourself to the top. <em>That means something.</em> Besides, I lost count of how many times you gave up your happiness for my own, even now; I could never be that selfless! The only time I was was after, y'know, my human daughter came into my life!" </p><p>"You don't mean that." Lilith was whispering in a sad, broken voice that not even the most accomplished actor could replicate; reminding everyone of how fragile she still was. "The only thing I can do is hurt the people I care about -- you, Amity, Alador, even Luz -- because I'm <em>wrong!</em> I'm the embarrassment, the inferior. You're not. You're better off without me --"</p><p>"<em>Stop.</em>" Eda cut her off, despite the sharp pain in her chest. "You leaving hurt even more than the curse." She pointedly ignored Lilith's wince. "Of course I'll get angry at the choices you make; let's face facts, you're kinda an idiot. But I couldn't ever hate you, because I can't. I should've helped you, Lily."</p><p>"Did you not hear what I said, Edalyn? I'm your big sister; it was never your responsibility to be there for me; I'm supposed to be there for you! And I've always been too weak and pathetic to do that, even now! I couldn't even protect you from me!"</p><p>"<em>Stop it!</em>" Eda shouted, starting to cry a little herself. "It's not all your fault! It never was! I made a lot of mistakes too, remember? I'm not some perfect innocent darling to be protected, I'm awful in my own way too, and always was! And don't give me that shit about you being weak; the only other people that come close to you are me, Alador here, and the freaking Emperor! <em>Fucking no one else</em> comes close!"</p><p>It didn't seem to quite register in Lilith; an internal wall had risen in her mind, comprised of self-destructive desires; namely, putting Eda's happiness over her own mental health. "I've convinced you all into thinking that I'm a good person, haven't I? Even still, I can't always make you happy, Eda. Luz, however, does. She won't abandon you; won't hurt you like I did. I've seen the way you look at each other; you really are mother and daughter now. I already took so much from you; not this. You need to be there for her."</p><p>Eda was getting frustrated as her own tears fell; why couldn't she see she deserved good things as well? "I've got to be there for Luz?! Remember, <em>Auntie,</em> you do too!" </p><p>"Why do you want me there?! I don't want to ruin anyone else like I ruined you! I don't deserve your love, or anyone's! I'm not worthy!" She gestured toward Luz and Amity, both frozen solid at the woman breaking down in front of them. "...Children like them deserve all the good things that life can offer. They don't deserve a selfish, disappointing, tarnished, incompetent..."</p><p>Alador cut her off with a slap to the face. Not an abusive, "get in line" slap, rather, a loving, "don't you <strong>dare</strong> say that about yourself" slap. </p><p>Once Lilith shut up, Alador cupped her face in his hand and gazed right into her eyes, gold into grey and cyan. "You stop that <em>right now,</em> my raven. The choices you made in the past do <em>not</em> mean you're a bad person. Would I still be in love with you after all this time if you were? And besides, look at me; my most trusted advisors are a young half-bird girl, my own youngest daughter, and the most wanted criminal to ever hit the Boiling Isles, and my lady love's the scorned ex-leader of the Emperor's Coven. I stopped caring about my reputation a long time ago. And I'm a Blight; we only associate with the strongest of witches, like you. You're worthy of my love and my bloodline, because you managed to get me to fall in love with you." </p><p>He finished it with a long, loving kiss on her lips. It was fierce, desperate and he could hear his Lilith squeak against him. His hand came up to thread itself through her hair, his other one still holding her head. Her skin was as soft as the finest silk, and her tear-ridden eyes were lidded shut as she kissed back. Their lips locked like two puzzle pieces slotting together, and Alador could taste the lingering remnants of tea on Lilith's lips. </p><p>It was perfect. </p><p>He pulled away, and linked their hands together. While hers were soft, his were calloused and rough -- abominations were difficult magic, and substances often had to be tested by hand to find the failing. In fact, if they weren't already, Amity's would soon be the same. </p><p>Their foreheads rested together as Lilith bought one hand up to tangle in Alador's hair, the other still grasping his own. Alador could feel himself purring, a deep, rumbling sound that emanated deep within his chest, and he nuzzled closer as he rubbed his nose against hers. She chirped like a raven, and they both lightly laughed like they couldn't believe it was happening.</p><p>"I don't want anyone better," Alador finished. "I want you, Lilith. No one else. Whatever it takes." </p><p>He leant in for another kiss. This one was deeper, harder and more loving. She was beautiful, and soft, and warm, and her scent smelled <em>so good</em> because it was far too long since he could do this. But she wasn't close enough -- he couldn't quite feel her entirely, despite the fact that their noses were bumping together. He purred deeply again, and drew her into his lap. Despite the fluid motion, his arms and back protested it slightly. However, it was more than worth it to feel her body pressed against his once again, feel her straddling his thighs and her warmth against his chest. And although her hips were wider and softer than when he last felt them, his arm was once more curled in the small of her back, where it always should've been. As she relaxed against him, Alador nuzzled his head into Lilith's hair, deeply inhaling. He didn't care that her black lipstick was smudged across both of their mouths, or that his position on the sofa wasn't the most comfortable -- all that mattered was that they weren't going to be broken apart ever again.</p><p>It was only then that he looked, and beheld the audience that bore witness to his declaration of love.</p><p>His little Amity was openly gaping at them both, as if her entire universe had been completely shattered. Again. </p><p>The human Luz was seconds away from squealing with joy, as the tears ran down her cheeks in an ugly way from her bright brown eyes.</p><p>And lastly, Eda was darting her gaze rapidly between them in awe, as if so much was falling into place. </p><p>"I can't believe it, Lily!" Eda gasped. "You?! And the Aladog?! All this time?!" </p><p>"Yes, it's always been him," Lilith whispered, from her spot in Alador's lap, head against his chest. </p><p>Eda smiled widely -- the kind of smile only siblings could produce that promised endless teasing and mockery -- and Lilith buried her head in Alador's chest again, feeling the purr from deep within.</p><p>Even if she didn't deserve it, she was still going to enjoy being loved like this. </p><p> </p><p>That afternoon, the door opened, and in waddled the little demon King, carrying two heavily laden bags of shopping. He seemed unsteady, and not because of the load he was lugging.</p><p>"The many donuts were formidable foes," he whined, oh-so-sadly. "My tummy tum hurts." </p><p>Luz squeaked from her position on the sofa, where she and Amity were curled up together and reading Azura. "Aww, <em>angelito,</em>" she cooed as King rested the shopping against the sofa, and climbed up onto Amity's lap.</p><p>"Scarred cupcake destroyer, your overlord demands tummy scratches as tribute," he pouted as he laid down. </p><p>A soft smile on her face, Amity obliged. Within moments of her gently stroking and rubbing his round little tum, he burped, rolled over and curled up for a nap.</p><p>"Better," he mumbled as he rested. Amity and Luz shared a look, smiling warmly at each other.</p><p>Lilith also smiled warmly at the domestic scene before her, before moving over to grab the groceries and put them away.</p><p>She was so engrossed in her task that she almost didn't hear Eda come up behind her. She turned around, just in time to see her sister pull her into a hug. </p><p>"Edalyn..." she whispered, as she returned the hug gently. "I'm so sorry..." </p><p>"Hey, it's in the past now, and we're back together," Eda said sympathetically as they hugged. "We'll fix this together, you hear me?"</p><p>"Yeah... together..." Lilith agreed, gently pulling away.</p><p>"Besides, I got a much better question to ask," Eda continued, her face contorting into its usual smirk. "What about now?"</p><p>Lilith raised an eyebrow. "What do you mean?"</p><p>"I mean, now you're not a lapdog in the coven of sheep anymore. You're an honorary member of the Bad Girl Coven, as founded by your wonderful baby sister. A wild witch, through and through. Now, you have free reign to look into entanglements, <em>dalliances,</em> and all things in between! That something you want?"</p><p>Eda's enthusiasm was infectious; Lilith couldn't stop her smile. "If I'm honest, that's been the furthest thing from my mind these past weeks, what with learning glyphs, finding new avenues for goods, and everything else. But now, I think I can, yes. I'd certainly like to pursue it." </p><p>Eda's smirk only grew. "Now that's more like it! Knew my big sis had a libido somewhere under there," she laughed.</p><p>Lilith's shoulders rose defensively. "That's not what I meant; I just know I would like to get back into it at some point."</p><p>"Yeah! I mean, seriously! The big dog, Alador Blight himself, is still into you after three decades apart!" </p><p>"So you're capable of saying my name," Alador cut in from where he was drinking his tea at the table, "you just never did for decades?" He sighed, a grin on his face. "Only you'd do that."</p><p>He looked almost remorseful, drawing the attention of the sisters.</p><p>"Alador?" Lilith began.</p><p>"I was just... remembering when we had to leave each other..." Alador trailed off, as his memory came back to him.</p><p>
  <em><br/>
It was the day before Eda and Lilith were told that they'd have to duel each other for the spot in the Emperor's Coven. The two sisters were currently attempting to relax on the bleachers overlooking the Grudgby field during their study period, wondering where exactly he was and what he was doing. Lilith was concerned for her secret boyfriend, while Eda was angry about their adopted brother.</em>
</p><p>
  <em>"Oh, come on! Why the hell hasn't he read it?!" Eda shouted after checking her scroll for the thirtieth time in as many minutes. </em>
</p><p>
  <em>"Still nothing?" Lilith asked, her voice carrying an undertone of concern.</em>
</p><p>
  <em>"Still nothing!" Eda shouted. "I know he's a part of that rich asshole club now, but he couldn't even respond with a simple hello?! After all the things we did together, he's just gonna leave us hanging like this?!" </em>
</p><p>
  <em>Lilith grimaced in agreement; this wasn't like him. Even in moments where he couldn't meet them, he'd at least send something to explain why. Him ghosting them like this was completely out of left field.</em>
</p><p>
  <em>But speaking of, Eda's scroll went off at last, and recognition dawned on her face at reading it.</em>
</p><p>
  <em>"What?" asked Lilith. "Is it him?"</em>
</p><p>
  <em>"It's him, all right," Eda confirmed. "He wants to meet in the Room of Shortcuts." She lightly laughed. "Where else?" </em>
</p><p>
  <em>The two got up, and made their way over to the hidden door behind the bleachers, opening it up with a spell circle from Eda. The sisters jumped into the room, closing the door behind them. Looking up the room's central spiral staircase, the two saw someone wearing the magenta sleeves and leggings of the Abomination Track curled up into a fetal position at the top. As the two climbed up and approached, they saw that it was a boy with scruffy auburn hair and bright gold eyes. Alador Blight.</em>
</p><p>
  <em>Eda was the first to say something. "How's it going?"</em>
</p><p>
  <em>Alador said nothing in reply. Lilith's concern grew; this definitely wasn't like him.</em>
</p><p>
  <em>"Please don't say that it's because you've fallen for me at last, Aladog," laughed Eda. "I know, I'm bi and I'm hot, but I don't feel the same way." </em>
</p><p>
  <em>Inwardly, Lilith smiled smugly; she knew the real reason he hadn't fallen for Eda was because Alador had fallen in love with her, Lilith. </em>
</p><p>
  <em>Alador raised his head from between his knees. "Eda... don't..."</em>
</p><p><em>Even Eda could tell that Alador was in his worst emotional state yet; his quiet voice held nothing but pain, and the features on his face spoke of every ounce of despair he felt. He looked hopelessly shattered and despondent. </em>Holy shit, what the hell did they do to him?!<em></em></p><p>
  <em>Lilith moved over to him, and draped her arms around his shuddering shoulders. "Alador, what is it?" </em>
</p><p>
  <em>He had to physically push every single word out. "It's my mothers... they ordered that when I'm eighteen, I have to... marry Odalia Graves." </em>
</p><p><em>As Lilith recoiled in shock, Eda scoffed in pure disgust. "Graves?! Whoa, that's... fucking... ugh. I'll wreck </em>that<em> wedding for free, if you want." </em></p><p>
  <em>Grimly, Alador set his jaw. "I've survived worse than that." </em>
</p><p>
  <em>Eda wasn't quite convinced of that -- and remained confused. "Still, you didn't have to give Lily and I the cold shoulder for a month. What else did they make you do?" </em>
</p><p>
  <em>His entire body seemed to clench, particularly his face. "They... also... told me... I... had to..." He almost couldn't say it. "...cut ties with you both." </em>
</p><p>
  <em>Both their reactions were immediate. Lilith's was one of fear, while Eda's was one of disbelief. "What the fuck?!"</em>
</p><p>
  <em>Alador just nodded. He hated it just as much, if not more so, but he feared what would happened to them even more. In his mind's eye, he could see Odalia's sneer, and the fury in both of his mothers' eyes as they planned horrific torture for him and the sisters, the kind that words couldn't describe.</em>
</p><p>
  <em>He wasn't going to do that to Eda, and especially not to his Lilith. "Guys... you don't know what they'll do to you if..."</em>
</p><p>
  <em>"I know the kinds of things they do to you!" Eda cut him off, causing Alador and Lilith to look over at her as her face burned red with fury. "I know your parents are snobby, elitist, abusive fucksticks! But I didn't realise you're an absolute coward, as well!"</em>
</p><p>
  <em>Alador leapt to his feet as shock spread across his face -- this wasn't turning out as he'd thought, but it was still painful. "What?!" </em>
</p><p>
  <em>"Are you deaf? Your mommies told you to stop seeing your best friends, and what?! You just obey like the lapdog you are?"</em>
</p><p>
  <em>"Do you honestly think I wanted this?! That I accepted it all without any question?! That I didn't try to fight back?! That I don't care about you?!" </em>
</p><p>
  <em>"Oh no, the poor baby got angry at his handlers for a bit and kneeled! What a courageous rebel you are! A real brother would've fought till his dying breath for his family, not just give up!"</em>
</p><p>
  <em>"Eda, stop! There's more going on here than you can see!" Alador shouted, not yet noticing the 'brother' part. "I should have realised it wasn't going to last forever..." </em>
</p><p><em>"Don't you </em>fucking<em> dare tell me what isn't meant to be, Alador Blight!" Lilith cried out, tears streaking down her face. "I won't accept it!" </em></p><p>
  <em>Alador felt his temper flare up, just like Eda's. "So what?! We knew this day was coming! We knew it wasn't all going to just work out! We knew we're a trio of teens whose opinions don't matter in the grand scheme! Grow up, both of you! This is a breakup, for all of us! Lilith, Eda... you chose the wrong person to love and now you're paying for it."</em>
</p><p><em>"I thought we mattered to you! I thought you would have fought for us!" Lilith shouted, her eyes red and puffy from crying. She turned and ran, emotionally distraught. As she ran out, she shouted one last thing. "You're a fucking </em>coward,<em> Alador Blight! I hate you!" </em></p><p>
  <em>The door slammed. Alador turned back to Eda too late to see the punch coming -- it connected solidly with his jaw and sent him sprawling on the ground. </em>
</p><p><em>"Shit!" Eda swore as she shook out her hand. "It never hurts like that in manga! </em>The fuck is your face made of?!<em>"</em></p><p>
  <em>Alador didn't reply to that; the pain of knowing he'd just broken his little raven hurt far more than any physical blow. </em>
</p><p>
  <em>"You were my brother, Alador! I loved you!" Then she turned his back on him, and spoke in a much quieter voice. "I guess this is it. Congrats on your engagement." </em>
</p><p>
  <em>With that, Eda turned and rushed after Lilith, leaving behind a broken Alador -- who physically couldn't cry anymore. </em>
</p><p>
  <em>There was no one left to leave him now -- because everyone had left him.<br/>
</em>
</p><p>That, to date, was the second worst moment of Alador's life. The worst being when his grandfather died. </p><p>The third worst, taking place only a couple days later, was when Eda's curse first affected her. </p><p>He remembered that day perfectly, much as he didn't want to. Still emotionally broken, he was slumped next to Odalia in the stands, overlooking the field where Lilith and Eda would duel each other for a spot in the Emperor's Coven. Despite what he'd done to them, and what had been done to him, he still found himself holding his breath in anticipation of what would come next. </p><p>He'd been shocked when Eda had thrown the duel, and suspicious of Lilith's fearful expression at the declaration. When it had actually happened, and Eda had run off after transforming with Lilith being declared as the Emperor's Coven's newest member, Alador had wanted to leap down and help them both, but he'd made himself sit still to protect all three of them from something worse. </p><p>He'd managed to hide what he was really feeling behind a cold shell, as usual. But just barely. </p><p>Watching Eda walk around for the next few days with everyone treating her like she had some kind of horrible, contagious disease was heart wrenching. And even worse was that he could do nothing at all to protect her, or she'd be in an even worse position. </p><p>But he had endured. </p><p>Because he was a Blight, and only now did he see it, but his blood meant his spirit was unbreakable. And so were those of his children. But that didn't mean he didn't regret those actions he took. </p><p>"I'm sorry," he eventually sighed. A phrase that he struggled to say to his children, yet it easily flowed when it came to his lost love and her sister.</p><p>"For what?" Eda asked, confused yet again. "You didn't do anything wrong."</p><p>"For leaving you both," he whispered. "You were right, I was a coward, and I hurt you..." </p><p>"Oh, buddy..." Eda said, a remorseful look on her face.</p><p>"You had your reasons," Lilith agreed, mirroring her sister.</p><p>"I should've done something to help you," Alador stubbornly grit out, his hands clenching at his sides. He didn't regret much, but this was one of the few things he did regret. </p><p>This time, Lilith initiated the hug -- something she almost never did. And Alador was more than happy to reciprocate; his Lilith was great at hugs.</p><p>However, the moment was broken by a sound coming from the crystal ball in the living room.</p><p>Recognising the type of noise it was making, Amity grit her jaw. Crystal balls only made this kind of noise when something major had occurred. The scene built before them on the ball, and the group all huddled around to watch. Clearly, it was a formal press conference setting, and behind Belos' imposing mask, they could see the equally imposing view of his castle's throne room.</p><p>"Citizens of the Boiling Isles," he began. "Our actions now decide the life and long continuity of our civilization... the survival of the Boiling Isles depend upon us all now... not since the Savage Ages has our destiny been placed in such a balance." </p><p>He paused, to allow the words to sink in before he continued. "As you all no doubt remember, it was the Titan's will that Lilith and Edalyn Clawthorne be absolved of their crimes, and I dutifully carried out its will. I have spent the weeks since testing the brightest among us for someone to fill her role, and at long last, I have found her. Odalia Graves."</p><p>Luz immediately went to grip Amity's hand, as Alador sucked in a sharp breath and Eda and Lilith exchanged a fearful look. When they turned back to the ball, Odalia had taken the stage, looking exactly as she had the day Amity was burned, only now sporting that blasted white cloak.</p><p>"Thank you, my liege," Odalia said, before addressing the audience directly. "Our Emperor has called upon all of his loyal cities to aid him in cracking down on injustice, no matter the form it takes. I should know, because I have faced it myself."</p><p>"What?" Lilith whispered, as images of a wounded and beaten Odalia filled the screen. Of course, the people in the Owl House knew them to be fake automatically, but the populace at large would buy right into it. </p><p>Odalia went on, "I can't understand why my husband chose to love someone inferior in both power and beauty, and do these kinds of things to me. Even worse, he manipulated my precious children into rejecting my help whenever I offered it; they don't love their mother like all good children should."</p><p><em>What makes this one occasion more important than all the others like it?! Because it happened to you?!</em> Amity wanted to scream. Instead, she stayed silent as Luz made a sound of naked disgust, Alador clenched his fists tightly, Lilith swore something only heard in the dingiest of taverns, and Eda shot a few insulting hand gestures at the ball.</p><p>"Such actions cannot continue. To reach this goal, I have been granted one of the Isles' highest authorities, and given the full right to utilize deadly force. Those disgusting wild witches will soon learn they cannot flaunt our rules with impunity." Odalia raised a fist in a sweeping military gesture. "Order and safety will prevail once more!"</p><p>The message faded out on her ringing last words. Eda and Lilith looked at each other again, then slowly turned to Alador, who was vibrating with fury over what he'd seen. When he did speak, it was in a quiet, dangerous voice that sent chills down Amity's spine. "Do you... have anything in this house you wouldn't mind... destroyed?"</p><p>"Ah, the basement's full of creatures I haven't gotten around to taking care of, and I don't keep anything valuable in there; all my human stuff's in the attic with Lily. Why d'you ask?" </p><p> </p><p>The sounds of crashing and yelling soon permeated into the clearing around the Owl House. They came from Alador, letting loose a bastardised mix of rage and insults directed at Odalia as he tore apart the space around him with magic and his bare hands.</p><p>He'd went in there to let loose his anger on the basement, rather than on the residents.</p><p>Eda was leaning against the door that led down to the basement, taking resigned swigs from a bottle of apple blood. Lilith was outside, casting a shield spell over the house to protect it from an incoming storm of boiling rain. Luz was back on the sofa, reeling from what she'd seen. And Amity was currently on her scroll, talking to the twins.</p><p>"So yeah, we've got to be careful now. I don't doubt that we'll be forcibly returned to her if we're caught. And I'd rather dive into the Boiling Sea than go back to her."</p><p>"Hear, hear, Amity," Emira agreed.</p><p>"See you and Dad tomorrow?" Edric asked.</p><p>"Sure. Oh, before I forget to mention, our dad and Lilith were boyfriend and girlfriend at our age, and they're just getting back together." Amity paused a moment to let that sink in. "How does that grab you?"</p><p>Amity couldn't see her siblings giving each other stares a million yards long, expressions screaming shock and awe. Eventually, Edric replied, "That's great!"</p><p>Emira gasped. "You what? How are you on board with Amity's old tutor getting with our father?!"</p><p>"Because she's a huge step up from our mother!" Edric shouted back. "I know that's not a high bar to clear, sure, but you gotta agree with that!"</p><p>There were a few moments of silence, punctuated by more of Alador's background shouting, before Emira conceded. "Okay, fine! She is a step up! But it's still disturbing, and kind of disgusting, and -- argh!" </p><p>The sounds of Emira thudding her head into the desk immediately followed, and Edric took the scroll.</p><p>"Nice going, Mittens," he laughed. "You broke our resident Idiot. We'll get back to you, okay?"</p><p>"Yeah. Take care, Goof," Amity responded with a smile before hanging up.</p><p>There came the sounds of one last huge blast of magic, then the house was silent. The lighter sounds of upper class shoes against concrete followed that, and the door to the basement swung open. Out walked Alador, looking disheveled like he'd just gotten out of bed, and he staggered a little before letting out the unholy mother of all sighs.</p><p>"Got it all outta your system?" Eda asked, throwing back the last of her apple blood. </p><p>"Yes," was Alador's reply, his head hung and his whole form slumped over. "And I need a drink."</p><p>"I've got some wine floating around here..."</p><p>"I'm gonna need something much stronger than that," Alador muttered, still exhausted from his rage against the basement. "You wouldn't happen to have some of <em>that</em> kind of alchemhol on hand, would you?"</p><p>"Oh," Eda realised. "Well, I've got some good bourbon from when I went through the cellars of Lady Merryworth."</p><p>"I'll take that..." Alador murmured, finally looking up from the ground. The first thing he saw was Amity, clearly scared from what she heard of his rage.</p><p><em>Chapter 3: Reach Out. Children often feel threatened by authoritarian figures, so by being the one to reach out, it builds trust towards the two.</em> Damn it, look at him. Quoting a parenting book to himself, because it just wasn't taught in the same way that flying or handwriting was taught, with no one-size-fits-all approach. </p><p>"You got it," Eda confirmed, heading for the kitchen. "Ice?"</p><p>"Yeah, sure," Alador agreed, before moving over to the sofa and draping an arm around Amity. "How are you holding up?"</p><p>"I lost everything, because of her. I want it back." Amity's voice had shifted to her coldest one, the one that held only hatred.</p><p>"Then we'll get it back, piece by piece," Alador tried to encourage. </p><p>Amity nodded, and went back to reading with Luz as Eda returned and Lilith came back from casting the spell, looking exhausted. </p><p>"Bourbon, sis?" Eda offered as she handed Alador his glass.</p><p>"Thank you," Lilith accepted as she sat down between Eda and Alador, taking the offered glass of liquid.</p><p>"So, Al, how much d'you hate Odalia at this stage?" Eda asked, gesturing with her glass towards the inert crystal ball.</p><p>"What scale are we using?" Alador grumbled into his drink.</p><p>"Oh, pfft -- one to a hundred?"</p><p>"One. Point. Two. Billion," was Alador's reply, making sure to draw out every single syllable for as long as possible.</p><p>"Oh, wow..." Eda muttered. "That's... a lot. This one's really got under your skin, huh?"</p><p>"Well, you obviously didn't see the same things I did, did you?" His grip on the glass tightened considerably. "I know it's difficult for victims to come forward because they're scared no one'll believe them, but believing them all without question gets us creatures like <em>that,</em> who's a pathological liar and a narcisstic psychopath spewing utter lies--"</p><p>"Now that's what I'm talking about," Eda shot back with a smirk. "The big dog is back."</p><p>Alador didn't say anything, choosing instead to stare deep into the dark liquid in his glass, taking a deep smell. </p><p>"Here's to wanting to kill people for hurting our kids, huh?" Eda chuckled, raising her glass with Lilith following suit. Rolling the ice around a bit, Alador looked up and raised his own glass, clinking it against the other two. </p><p> </p><p>That night, when it was clear the boiling rain wasn't going to let up until the morning, everyone retired to bed. And given the cramped space of the Owl House, Alador and Lilith were bunking together in the attic.</p><p>Alador had shut up Eda's teasing by hooting at her again, with Owlbert's help.</p><p>Alador found himself gawking internally at the room lit up by a single light orb, and how much it felt like it was Lilith's. It was cramped, and that was to be expected of an attic that had a whole bunch of human junk piled up and kicked into corners, but the clear space looked very comfortable. The walls had been painted the same cyan as her eye, and made for a nice combination with the white furniture and drapes. An old rug, coloured a drak green, completed the look. Lilith had kept the space extremely tidy, with only the desk being cluttered with used papers containing glyph drawings. </p><p>"So this is where you sleep?" Alador asked.</p><p>"When I don't use it to experiment with glyphs," Lilith replied. "If it helps, my old house was mostly the same."</p><p>"Where do I go, then?"</p><p>"I don't have more than one bed, and the sofa isn't exactly comfortable... I'd know, considering I spent my first couple of nights on that..."</p><p>"This is ridiculous," Alador muttered, mostly to himself. "We'll both fit on this mattress, so why not?"</p><p>Lilith slowly took his hands in her own. "I've missed you," she muttered, gripping tightly as if he'd vanish like a wisp of smoke.</p><p>"I've missed you too," Alador replied, drawing her closer and gently caressing Lilith's neck with his lips. "For the longest time, I thought I didn't deserve you; that this world didn't deserve you, and I didn't deserve to ruin beauty like yours."</p><p>"I know," Lilith agreed, nuzzling her cheek against Alador's beard. "We're both awful at this, in our own way."</p><p>"And yet." Alador moved his hands to Lilith's hips, lifting her jumper over her head and depositing it on the floor.</p><p>"And yet." Lilith moved her hands to Alador's chest, undoing the buttons of his shirt and sliding it off his frame.</p><p>"What are we doing?" Alador asked simply, running his hands over Lilith's soft body as they both lay down on the bed.</p><p>"I don't know, but I want more..." Lilith whispered, smiling up at the man currently smiling back at her. "I still can't believe you want me, Alador. When did you know?"</p><p>"Truth is, it was when we first met, after we bought down the rogue abomination and you let loose that column of fire," Alador chuckled as he stroked her hair. "You looked so powerful, so beautiful... I couldn't not fall for you." </p><p>"You thought we'd blame you for that whole fiasco, throwing you under the bus like anyone else would," Lilith recalled.</p><p>"But neither of you would ever do that," Alador remembered. </p><p>"I think I fell for you when you first showed me how you used that sword," Lilith whispered as she ran her hands over Alador's chest and torso, feeling the rough textures of all the scars left behind from failed assassination attempts on him and his family. "You were a force of nature... I wanted to know everything about you..."</p><p>Alador smiled his real smile, the one with too many teeth, at the woman just below him. That wasn't the husk of Lilith, who shuffled around as if she had become the most horrible monster to ever face the Boiling Isles. That was a very special and very intimate Lilith, who deserved all the good things in life. And Alador had fallen for everything about her, no matter what.</p><p>As Alador leaned down, he closed his eyes, feeling Lilith's lips on his own, and how warm they were. For a long while, they just embraced each other and passionately kissed, letting the light orb hang in the air. Then, slowly, Alador moved his hands further down as Lilith nodded her consent. They both undressed completely, and nothing else seemed to matter except each other.</p><p>The light orb went out, and the dim light left them in the darkness, consumed in their passion. And as they lay in bed afterwards, Alador's arms holding Lilith tightly, they knew they both weren't going to let it end.</p><p> </p><p>Lilith was feeling very comfortable, wrapped in all the blankets. They smelled of pine and petrichor, and they were incredibly fluffy... no, wait, they were sturdy... or strong? How could blankets be strong? Did blankets have arms, as well? Oh wait... it was the Boiling Isles, some of them really did. Smiling, Lilith nuzzled further into the arms that held her. In that moment, she'd never felt safer. </p><p>Despite that, she did have to get up to make everyone breakfast. Slowly, she sat up, Alador rolling off her limply. Wait...<em>what?!</em></p><p>Forcing herself to stay still and not leap out of bed, Lilith made herself slip slowly out. The pain in her groin area, and the fact that she wasn't wearing anything both hit her like a punch from the Titan, and the blush completely overtook her head.</p><p>She had never been more thankful for her early riser nature than she was in that moment. </p><p>Quickly grabbing her underwear and a large shirt, she quietly tiptoed out of the room and down to the kitchen, and buried herself in making breakfast, trying desperately not to think about what she and Alador had done last night.</p><p>Or the fact that the shirt she was wearing was <em>wickedly comfortable.</em></p><p> </p><p>Alador woke up to a sweet smell coming from the house's lower levels. Sniffing, he identified it as pancakes -- or more specifically, the kind Lilith used to make for him, Eda, and herself whenever he stayed the night at their house. </p><p>Pulling on his trousers and shirt from yesterday (while not buttoning it up), Alador headed down to the kitchen, where Lilith had already set up several plates laden with those pancakes. The smell of syrup smacked into him like a hammer, and he walked over to his Lilith at the kettle and draped himself over her.</p><p>Lilith leaned into the touch, and the two began gently swaying to a song coming from Luz's human device from where she'd left it on the counter last night.</p><p>
  <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iZV7akaSo0s">Song of old love.</a>
</p><p>Stealing a glance downwards, he almost laughed at what Lilith had thrown on -- an oversized, purple shirt with a crudely drawn image of Eda riding her staff on the front, declaring her a member of the 'Bad Girl Coven', whatever that meant.</p><p>Alador realised, after a few moments of gentle dancing, how badly he wanted this. He wanted this to happen every morning, and it was down to them to fight and make it happen.</p><p> </p><p>The first attempt against him came that very morning, as Alador got in for work. Kuro greeted him at the front nervously, reporting that someone was waiting for him. It was still early in the morning; the sun was only just rising above the treetops. </p><p><em>Is it that she thinks I'm like Edalyn, in that I can't function properly without at least an hour and two cups of apple blood in the morning?</em> Alador wondered. <em>No, scratch that, lapdogs like this don't think for themselves. This is just the first of Odalia's many attempts to take me out of the picture. Prepare to be disappointed, bitch.</em></p><p>The lapdog in question was a woman known simply as Corvia. She was pacing before his desk, wearing the orange of the Beast Keeping coven, and a crude steel sword hung at her waist. </p><p>"Oh, hello there," Alador greeted as he sat down at his desk, and Kuro took up a position near the window. "To what do I owe the pleasure?" </p><p>"The leader of the Emperor's Coven has sent me to command you to free the constables you arrested and sent to the Scipian steel mines." Corvia showed Alador the piece of paper with the message, the seal of the Emperor's Coven on it.</p><p>Alador waved it away; he'd seen enough of them to know the contents. "Can I offer you some tea?"</p><p>"I don't need to wake up," Corvia spat. "And I didn't come here to drink with you."</p><p>Kuro was already a quivering wreck at the flying words, but Alador's spine had been broken and reforged into one made out of Scipian steel. He didn't break easily anymore. "I can't help but think that if Odalia was that concerned about these people, she'd come herself. Instead, it's you. What does that mean, I wonder?"</p><p>"It doesn't matter; you just have to release them." A sneer was forming on the woman's lips; she was enjoying this. <em>Is she one of Odalia's personal pets, or not?</em> "Need I remind you, she serves the emperor directly."</p><p>"So do I, like all the coven heads. What else?"</p><p>"Yes. She also told me to tell you that your new pet -- Blackwater -- defied an imperial command, straight from her."</p><p><em>Meaning that Odalia has already commanded Steve to carry out her orders, and he rebuffed her because his loyalties are still with Lilith and me. He deserves all the head pats.</em> "I see." </p><p>"Thus, she insists that the man be removed from his office and sent to the Scipian steel mines for treason. I warn you--" </p><p>Alador abruptly placed his cup back on the desk. "I won't take these ridiculous warnings from the likes of you, girl."</p><p>"I am a witch," she replied stiffly, gripping her sword as if to remind Alador that she had one. "Watch how you speak to me." Obviously she meant to try and threaten him, but the utterly ridiculous eye shadow she was wearing ruined the effect completely. </p><p>"Stop gripping that sword; it's poor craftsmanship anyway. And I don't even need to lie about it."</p><p>Corvia's face reddened -- she had to know about the secret. "I am a witch --"</p><p>"So you keep reminding me. Tell me, how exactly did you get into her good graces? Was it after you found out she preferred women?" A brief flicker in her eyes, and Kuro's head was darting back and forth between them. "What, is that it? Don't have anymore warnings for me, <em>witch?</em>"</p><p>"Withdraw these disgusting accusations or I'll --"</p><p>"Enough. Did you not think about what Belos would do when he finds out that his new coven leader relies on lying to hold her position?"</p><p>"I didn't mean to... I was only following orders..." </p><p>"You hated every minute of it? You expect me to believe that? What exactly did they offer you to march into my office, alone, nowhere near armed enough, and demand these asinine things of me? Was it a nice, high-power office? Was it a fancy title? Hell, was it Odalia's legs opening for you at night so you could breed with her? Oh, I'm sure it must have been <em>so</em> painful." Alador got to his feet, the legs of his chair scraping against the floor as he rose up. "Kuro, send a letter directly to Emperor Belos; he'd love to hear this."</p><p>Any and all defiance shot out of Corvia like a crossbow bolt. The young witch fell to her knees before the Blight like a beaten dog. "Mercy! I beg you, my lord, mercy!"</p><p>"Save it for Kikimora, why don't you? She loves a good beg." </p><p>"Please, my lord, it was her bidding, like you said... but our emperor, he'd never..."</p><p>"He won't like the truth being kept from him, will he?"</p><p>"My lord, I'll leave the cities, you won't have to hear from me again, I swear --"</p><p>Alador was getting good at holding in his laughter. "No. I want to know what Odalia's doing next -- her plans, where she goes, who she sees and what they talk about -- and if you stay close to her and tell me all of it, I'll keep faith with you. Do you understand?"</p><p>The threat was clear. "Yes, my lord... but the demands..."</p><p>Alador grinned. "This is her plan; to destroy my power base, so I can be removed from office. If any of them are still alive, I'll release them. She can keep them as pets if she wants or conscript them, I don't give a shit which one, but they won't hold power while I do."</p><p>"And Blackwater?"</p><p>"Tell her you believe he can be swayed, given enough time and incentives. That'll placate her enough."</p><p>"Yes, my lord."</p><p>"Good. Now, get out of my sight."</p><p>Corvia bowed stiffly, and left. She looked smaller and more fragile than when he'd entered the room. </p><p>Alador sighed as he sat back down. "I hope her parents have other children -- that one isn't going to survive the year. I mean, she's a fool and pathetically weak, but she doesn't deserve what we're doing to her." When it didn't register, he looked over to Kuro and saw her quaking slightly in fear of him. He sighed. "Have a seat, please."</p><p>Slowly, and still scared of him, Kuro drew a chair over and sat opposite Alador at his desk. Internally, he frowned -- he didn't like his underlings, least of all his most trusted -- being scared of him like this. But then again, she was easily frightened. And there was something in her eyes that Alador recognised, much as he didn't want to.</p><p>"There it is," Alador muttered from deep in his seat. "You recognize it immediately once you see it in the upper echelons of society for over a decade. Oathbreakers. Traitors. Witches without honor; that's what you see us Blights as." He took a long, deep breath in and out. "You ever heard of volsion before?" </p><p>"Of course I have, sir," Kuro whispered. It was a highly volatile and explosive potion that could not be extinguished once ignited; it would keep burning until it ran out of fuel to burn. The most accurate comparison would be the human substance called napalm.</p><p>"The old Warden Aegar was obsessed with it. That was always his method of execution; covering victims in that and setting it alight -- blowing them up. He loved to watch it. He did it to pretty much everyone who was against him, and with his war against Belos in full swing there was no shortage of people who hated him. He realised that Belos wasn't just another lord who'd crowned himself, but the greatest threat to the Isles' freedom in... well... ever. He saw traitors everywhere, and he had informers there to point out any that he might've missed. So he made a plan to hold Belos' empire hostage, by placing huge caches of volsion all over the Boiling Isles, in every single city that submitted to Belos' rule. Beneath libraries, beneath people's homes, under all the major trading hubs, even under places of education like Hexside, Glandus, and St. Epiderm." </p><p>"How do you know all this, my lord?" Kuro asked in a fearful whisper. Her eyes were the size of Grudgby balls, and her voice was completely fearful.</p><p>"My grandfather told me the stories when I was a boy; he had no reason to lie about it," Alador explained, before continuing. "This plan was carried out in secret, by his most loyal and powerful witches, to the point they didn't even trust their own apprentices to help out. One of Aegar's informers, however, wasn't a complete idiot. With a handful of her Warden's best coming and going day and night, she became suspicious, and worked it out. Lady Nyxtao, that was her name, one of many minor landowners at the time. Then the rebels attacked the Avalon Crossroads, and you know what happened there. When the word reached him, Aegar chose to turn his hostage plan into a last act of spite. She did all she could think of to convince him otherwise; reasoning, jokes, threats, and begging. When all of that failed, she denounced him right there in his throne room. Of course, that got her executed via volsion." </p><p>He gave a grim smile. "But Lady Nyxtao had the last laugh; she'd sent word of his plan directly to my grandparents, Lord and Lady Blight. They got to his stronghold within the day, the entire army of House Blight at their backs. Aegar planned to blow up his volsion caches, and execute all the people he felt had forsaken the Isles. Before he could give the orders, though, House Blight's forces reached him to stop his plan. They smashed down the walls and stormed in, sacking the city. Grandmother went after the pyromancers to stop them, and Aegar was beyond reason when Grandfather came upon him; terminally malnourished, sustained by a whole bunch of narcotics, and completely fanatical in his hatred. 'Burn them all', he kept shouting as Grandfather fought through his guards. 'Purge the heretics,' like all of it was some holy act. Then, when Aegar turned to run away, Grandfather drove Silencer -- this sword," -- Alador punctuated it by drawing it out of its sheath and lying it on the table -- "into his back. He still kept shouting for his pyromancers to set off the volsion. Grandfather opened his throat with Silencer to shut him up." Breathing slowly, he finished, "Belos found them the morning after, cradling each other in the throne and broken over what they'd done." </p><p>In that moment, Kuro saw Alador as half a corpse, half a god. "My lord, why didn't you tell everyone else this?" </p><p>He scoffed at the thought. "Do you honestly believe that the other lords and ladies wanted to hear the story of the ones who'd 'betrayed' them? We were pariahs the moment Belos declared them as lord and lady in his new empire." He gave his loyal assistant a long, pointed look. "And this situation has just made it about eight times worse."</p><p>Kuro leaned forward, drawing her seat as close to the desk as possible. "So what now, my lord?" </p><p>Alador replied with a grim smile, "Easy. We gather information, make and break alliances, increase our power base, and only act when and where we should. Make no mistake, Kuro; a flashpoint is coming. And until it reaches us, we just have to sit tight."</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>I'd like to take this moment to thank the founder of RavenBlight, FunnyFany, and the ship's trailblazers -- Sora_U, myself (I_HeartLapidot), DoodleDodie, and anxiety_and_all_its_subsequent_failings.</p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
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